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Sabine Wittmann
Sabine Wittmann was born in Wiesbaden and grew up in Nigeria. After her studies of architecture in Berlin she worked and lived as an architect in many countries, including Nigeria, Australia and Ireland. She started making pottery as a child and has continued to do so over the years. In recent years, also due to the pandemic, pottery has become more of a focus again to her and so a pottery workshop has gradually emerged in her parents' garage. In March 2021, Sabine Wittmann and her workshop moved into the newly renovated rooms of a small timber frame house in Wiesbaden, where she now runs a small pottery and gallery. The gallery also exhibits works by other artists.
The first Ile Iles
The first Ile Iles were made from the laterite that she dug up in her garden in Lagos, Nigeria. She used it to sculpt small figurines that served her as toys. Laterite is a clayey soil found in most tropical regions. It is traditionally used unfired as a building material, but also fired to make vessels and sculptures. Some of the famous figurines of the Nok culture from the area around Kaduna are over 2000 years old.
Sabine Wittmann's first clay figures were a far cry from the Nok's masterpieces. They weren't figural sculptures, they looked more like the mud huts and silos of the savannah. Today's Ile Iles still look like this. Ile Iles and Ile fish are still a favorite motif today when she sketches, paints or makes pottery. But the Ile Iles and the Ile fish have evolved over time, not only in pottery, but also in her drawings. Women and men have come along, and some who don't take it too seriously. Some are small and knobby, others narrow and tall. The clay figures are mostly puritanical and melancholic, the drawn ones are mostly cheerful and often rather scantily clad. They are also rarely slim. Pottery flowers and gardens as well as vases have also joined the parade.