Studio Director

Mat Newton

Mat is the mastermind behind The Salemi Ceramics Project. He is the co-founder of Leatherback Travel, a group of travel brands such as Fencox, Carex Tours, amongst others, that have taken thousands of travellers to unusual corners of the world.

It had long been a dream of his to start an art project that could breathe new life into a town that needed it. After searching for the right place, he found Salemi: a quiet Sicilian town that had been slowly losing people to bigger cities for years. He worked alongside locals and the Salemi council to bring this project to life, and what started as a ceramics school has since grown into a much bigger project.

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Studio Director

Rebeca

Rebeca is one of the creators behind The Salemi Ceramics Project, and the founder of Patch Adventures, one of Australia's most popular women-only travel companies, and Club Garrigue, a knitting retreat in Provence, France.

She's always been drawn to the sense of community that travel and shared learning create. She grew up surrounded by strong women who took real pleasure in teaching her their skills, and she's spent a lot of her life chasing that same feeling of learning from one another. It's what drew her into Salemi Ceramics, helping turn a raw idea into one of Europe's leading ceramics schools. And it's what led her, years later, to start Club Garrigue: a home for knitters, where nobody has to apologise for wanting to slow down, learn a craft, and enjoy themselves.

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Meet The Rest of the Team

We’re all about making your time at Salemi Ceramics special ✨

Carla Pianese

General Manager

Carla is Italian-British, born in Naples and shaped by over a decade living and working across London, the UAE, Denmark, and beyond, before choosing Sicily as home. With a background in project management and team operations spanning creative industries, start-ups, and education, and an MSc in Sustainable Heritage Management from UCL, she knows the magic happens in the studio only when everything runs smoothly out of sight. As General Manager, Carla is the connector between Salemi Ceramics' on-site and remote international teams, bringing both the operational rigour and the human warmth that a thriving international creative hub demands.

Mati Cini

Ceramics Manager & Teacher

Mati is an Italian ceramicist based between Salemi and Barcelona, with 10 years of experience working with and teaching ceramics. She is the Ceramics Manager at Salemi Ceramics, in charge of the ceramics program, ceramics residencies and installations, and technical ceramics operations. She was also our first teacher, and occasionally still teaches some of our courses

Csilla Bozsik

Bookings Operations

Csilla is Hungarian, currently living in Serbia. She has traveled around Europe while sailing on river ships. She is a ceramics enthusiast, finding peace and inner joy in throwing on the wheel. Csilla is Carla's helping hand, handling bookings, answering questions, and other administrative tasks, working remotely from home.

Mika Stoeva

Marketing Coordinator

Mikaela is a Bulgarian who occasionally enjoys moving countries. Born in a small town with a declining population, she felt an immediate pull toward what Salemi Ceramics is doing through art. In 2024, she spent six months in Salemi getting to know the region, the locals, the artistic hub, and the expat community slowly forming around it. Mika’s that friend who organises a fun activity, rounds everyone up, and makes sure it turns into something worth remembering. At Salemi Ceramics, she’s the one making sure you hear about all the initiatives we’ve been working on. So if you hear about a course that’s already sold out and realise you never got the memo… you know which way to smash a tiny pot of frustration.

Chiara Angelo

Program Assistant

Chiara is a Salemitana, born and raised in Salemi. She is studying foreign languages and literature and, for some years now, has discovered a passion for tourism and everything related to travel. She is a cheerful person, representing Salemi's vibe: sunny and warm. Chiara is the right hand of Carla, helping with all the daily tasks around the courses and students.

Alex Puma

Studio Coordinator

Alex was born and raised in Romania before moving to Salemi after finding love. Passionate about ceramics, she taught herself about glazing and firing techniques. Alex is the right hand of our teachers, preparing clay for classes and carefully handling all finished pieces, from firing and glazing to preparing them for shipment.

Francesco Di Lorenzo

Program Assistant

Francesco was born and raised in Salemi. With a deep passion for history and religion, he’s the perfect local to introduce you to the stories and spirit of the region. He has worked with archaeological sites across Western Sicily and the local tourism office - so he really knows his way around (and pretty much everyone in town too). An active volunteer at local festivals and celebrations, Francesco is always ready to lend a hand or share a story.He’s been our studio guide since the very beginning. He was also one of the first locals to complete the local ceramics course program at Salemi Ceramics. Each week, he welcomes our students with a Sunday evening orientation walk and often hosts dinners in the cloister. He also supports the studio with accommodation logistics and transport for our teachers and resident artists.Kind, knowledgeable, and genuinely welcoming, Francesco makes you feel at home from the moment you arrive.

Domenico Scalisi

Program Assistant

Domenico is a salemitano who studied languages in the U.S. and elsewhere in Italy, yet chose to return to his hometown. He volunteers at the local tourism office and somehow always seems to be at the center of whatever the local youth community is planning, such as creating an escape room inside a church.You'll recognize him in the studio as the person with a phone in hand, capturing moments from daily studio life. He's the go-to person for everyone in Studio 3 and has proven himself to be a great listener and someone students and artists can always count on.Domenico was about to pursue opportunities far from home when he came across Salemi Ceramics and decided to stay.