About the Designer

Armando Minjarez is a Mexican interdisciplinary artist, designer and community organizer. His practice is guided by themes of displacement, collaboration and empowerment to open space for the development of social change strategy, creative expression and liberation for racialized communities.

​

Currently, Armando is focusing most of his time in expanding his Del Norte ceramics line and working on public art commissions is his Wichita studio.

​

​

About Our Studio

​

Del Norte is a design studio founded and led by Armando Minjarez in 2015, and currently based in Wichita, Kansas. Ceramic has been our primary material focus, exploring design concepts within the context of public and domestic spaces.

 

Our design process is influenced by the aesthetic expressions Armando saw growing up surrounded by mountainous desert landscapes and colorful colonial Architecture in northern Mexico. Armando blends the utilitarian pragmatism characteristic of the agrarian lifestyle in the region, with rich and vibrant ceramic surfaces.

 

At Del Norte, we create practical ceramic products for everyday use that introduce a sophisticated and witty vibe to any space.

 

We launched our online store in 2019 featuring a selection of contemporary ceramic wares and have since expanded to offer wholesale services, small-batch tile production, special project design/production, and public art projects.

​

​

Our Product

​

Our ceramic products are handcrafted with care for everyday use. Using slip-casting and hand-building techniques, our ceramic line features soft colored unglazed exteriors, exposing to the touch a silky and sumptuous surface.

 

We achieve these soft clay colors by mixing mason stains directly into the clay for a unique finish. As with anything handmade, variations in size, shape, color and glaze consistency will occur and are expected. Each piece is truly one of a kind.