INTRODUCTION

Living in Bueno Aries, Argentina now, Perla Bardin is vicepresident of the World Council of Hands and Crafts for Latin America (Association o 78 countries of the UNESCO) from 1974 to 1980, permanent member of the International Ceramic Academic in Geneva (Switzerland) since 1972, co-founder of the Centro Argentino de Arte Ceramic, and designer of the factory Hartford Porcelanas Americnas, in Buernos Aires from 1981 to 1984. The Arts National Foundation granted her two scholarships to do research on Argentine popular pottery from 1964 to 1966. She studied pottery and glaze on metal in France, Italy, Sweden and Austria. She did research on indigenous pottery in the Amazon, Peru, Bolivia and Mexico. In Catamarca and Santiago del Estero she studied the technique used in the archeological pottery of Northern Argentina. In Japan, Thailand and Egypt she did research on kilns and methods used for firing and decoration. Perla has been teaching pottery in her workshop for 20 years.

Between 1955 and 1990 she has exhibited her works in Buenos Aires, Uruguay, Peru, Mexico and Washington. Between 1958 and 2000 she took part in 91 exhibitions held in Buenos Aires, Uruguay, Brazil, Washington, Mexico, New York, Faenza (Italy), Gmunden (Austria), Lima, Stuttgart (Germany), Dublin, Valencia, Vallauris (France), Kyoto, Paris, Budapest, Seattle (U.S.A), Carouge (Switzerland), New South Wales (Australia), Nyon (Switzerland), Istanbul, Denmark, Nagoya and Saga (Japan)and Toronto. Perla gave lectures in Buenos Aires, Vienna, Sidney, Denmark, at the University of Helsinki (Finland) and in Uruguay. She was invited to represent Argentina by the World Council of Arts and Crafts in Lima in 1968, Dublin in 1970, Canada in 1974, Mexico in 1976, Japan in 1980, Austria in 1980 and Australia in 1988. She organized nine exhibitions. Her sculptures are exhibited at the following museums: Gmunden Museum, Austria, Museo Ariana-Geneva-Switzerland, Powers Museum-Sydeney, Australia, Museo de Faenza, Italy, Fine Arts Museum of Edinburgh. International Bank of Development in Washington, USA, Museum Mimar Sinan University of Istanbul-Turkey, Museum of Saga-Japan, Museum Wenachee in the State of Washington-US. Her works are also exhibited in numerous private collections and buildings. She attends different television programs where she speaks about pottery and handicrafts. She wrote Modeling in Clay in 1968, Traditional Argentine Handicrafs in 1982, published in the USA. In 1988 collaborated on the Encyclopedia of Latin American Arts and Crafts and has written numerous articles in different magazines and newspapers.