CLAY FUNCTIONS AS A MEDIUM FOR COMMUNITY AND AS A DIRECT LINK BETWEEN PEOPLE AND PLACE.

THROUGH MULTIPLE FORMS OF EDUCATION, I FOSTER RELATIONSHIPS TO THIS REMARKABLE MATERIAL.

A-B Projects is a platform for community, critical dialogue, and material experimentation that expands and redefines the ceramics field. I founded A-B Projects in Los Angeles, CA in 2015, and relocated it to Portland, OR in 2023.

The time is upon us for a sea-change in education. As an alternative structure to higher education, A-B Projects offers an affordable, accessible, yearlong Ceramics Certificate (ABCC) in conceptual ceramics. Our programming also includes non-hierarchical State of Ceramics discussions that evaluate the trajectory of contemporary ceramics; monthly artist-led Studio Sessions in which an intimate group of participants collectively research specific concepts through making; and an abundant lineup of unordinary exhibitions that feature contemporary ceramics.

A-B Projects collaborates with Georgia Lassner on the writing project What About Clay?, which brings thoughtful, serious criticism to the ceramics community.

The classroom, with its focus on sharing ideas and knowledge, is an essential and logical extension of my practice as a maker. Working with students energizes, surprises, and challenges me; and I work extremely hard to do the same for them. Teaching, as an ongoing, dynamic activity, is a fundamental part of who I am. Currently, I am Assistant Professor and Head of Ceramics at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR.

In Spring 2020, the established means by which we teach, learn and connect underwent a seismic fracture. I responded to these circumstances by developing a series of experimental and experiential exercises (brought to life on the page by Georgie Flood’s pictures!) intended for university students, educators, and independent makers interested in engaging emotionally and conceptually with the current state of the world through the language of clay. Each exercise is cast as a culinary recipe, which individuals can adjust or tweak according to the availability of space, materials, tools and their own particular tastes.

Recipes for Conceptual Clay (in the time of covid-19) is available in hardcover or eBook.

Universities, galleries, and museums seek me out as a non-traditional ceramic artist who leads workshops and presents lectures that open new perspectives. Instead of performing familiar demonstrations in clay, I lead participatory exercises that shift mindsets and approaches to ceramics. I have guest lectured at dozens of institutions, including California College of the Arts (San Francisco, CA), Otis College of Art and Design (Los Angeles, CA), Ohio University (Athens, OH), University of Connecticut (Storrs, CT), University of Florida (Gainesville, FL), Ashoka University (Sonipay, Haryana, India), Berkeley Art Center (Berkeley, CA), Art Gallery Burlington (Ontario, Canada), and the Wignall Museum (Rancho Cucamonga, CA). In 2023, I gave the keynote speech for the Towards Future Bodies symposium, which A-B Projects co-organized at the Gardiner Museum in Toronto, Canada.