Antonio is a Spanish painter and potter based in Ireland. Working in stoneware and porcelain. In 2018 Antonio founded López Castro Ceramics, a ceramic studio where he produces a range of hand made tableware, bespoke porcelain pendant lights, and one-off ceramic interior pieces and ceramic artworks.

Born in Madrid in 1972, Antonio moved to Ireland in 1996 where he studied Fine Art at Sligo IT receiving an Honours Degree in 2003. After living in Co. Kerry for a number of years, he relocated to the foothills of the Ballyhoura mountains in north Co. Cork.

Coming from a previous Fine Art background, Antonio studied ceramics at the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland Ceramic Skills course in Thomastown, Kilkenny. In 2020 he received a DCCI Future Makers award, and he is part of the DCCI Portfolio program. His work is included in the National Museum of Ireland’s collection.

Inspired mostly by the Kerry and Mayo landscapes, Antonio’s painting depicted no particular real location but a mixture of photographic records, sketches and imagined places, resulting in a personal perception or our natural surroundings

"My work is inspired by the colours and rural landscape of the west of Ireland, where I have lived for many years. I work mostly in stoneware and porcelain, producing work in small batches. Each piece is made on the potters wheel and decorated by hand, and variations in design and decoration from one batch to the next make every item unique. Attention to detail and quality of craftsmanship are some of my concerns when designing and making, alongside creating pieces where functionality and beauty go hand in hand".

His tableware collections are hand crafted on a potter's wheel. Produced in small batches, each piece is decorated with slips before a bisque firing then glazed before being fired for a second time. Variations in design and decoration from one batch to the next make every item unique.

Antonio exhibits regularly in Ireland and abroad, and his work has been acquired by Mayo County Council, the Irish National Teachers Organization, and is held in many private collections.

DCCI Future Makers award, 2020

Ceramics Ireland Creativity in Craftsmanship Award, 2020

Gallery Zozimus Award, 2020

National Museum Of Ireland collection