Lladro - Fine Spanish Figurines
World Renowned Beautifully Crafted Porcelain Ornaments Made in Spain
From humble beginnings, Lladro porcelain is fast becoming a household and worldwide name, and a collection craze for the wealthy, with a presence in over 120 countries.
Lladro porcelain is now world famous and highly collectable. Howeever, its creators, the three Lladro brothers Juan, José and Vincente Lladro, rose from a poor background to making the finest porcelain in Europe.
Born into the tiny farming community of Almácera, near Valencia on the East Coast of Spain, they were introduced to the arts by their mother. The young men's desire to provide a better future for themselves and their family along with their interest in pottery led to them building a Moorish-style kiln in the family backyard. They learnt and became intrigued by the Chinese discovery of porcelain that added a secret ingredient to clay to make it into the fine and practical porcelain that became highly desired by European Royalty.
Inspired, the Lladro brothers set themselves a goal to produce the finest porcelain in Europe. They began creating and experimenting with formulas for the porcelain and pigments, moulds, varnishes and firing times. They were finally content with the unique high-quality porcelain that they still use today.
To advance their dream they borrowed 2,000 pesetas from a friend in 1958 to found Lladro porcelain in the town of Tavernas Blancas. Their porcelain became desirable locally and they began to sell their crafts on market stalls while at the same time beginning to design some porcelain figures.
In the 1960s many celebrity customers began to buy and collect the elegant figurines, and almost overnight the business took off. With the explosive growth in popularity, the factory had to be enlarged seven times, until in 1969 the start of what today is known as “Porcelain city" was planned.
"Porcelain city" has factories, kilns, offices and showrooms that cover 100,000 square feet, and today employs over 2,000 people.
Lladro porcelain is still made by hand and each piece is given individual care and special attention to detail. In 1986 Lladro established a Collectors society, and their first piece was called “Little Pals.” This figure was a big success and every year since then a special piece has been made, to be offered only to members of the society.
Lladro is now a household name worldwide, and if you weren't lucky enough to have bought the first collectors' piece, Little Pal for $85., it would cost around $3500.00 today – if you could find one for sale.
David Lladro, son of Vincente, says the company “creates sculptures with soul that celebrate life and have feelings".
The factory and factory shop are open to visitors, for more information on the factory visit the official Lladro website.
