Shino Odyssey
September 12 @ 10:00 am – October 31 @ 5:00 pm
Juried by Matthew Hyleck
Opening Reception: Saturday, September 12, 2026, 4:00 – 6:00 pm
Baltimore Clayworks is pleased to present Shino Odyssey, a juried exhibition celebrating the depth and diversity of Shino glazes. This exhibition invites artists to explore and showcase the vast possibilities of this glaze family known for its remarkable sensitivity to clay body, application, kiln atmosphere, and firing duration.
About the Juror
Matthew Hyleck received a BFA from Xavier University in 1997. He is currently an associate artist and instructor at Baltimore Clayworks whose outstanding functional pottery has earned recognition by the Maryland State Arts Council IAA in Craft in 2018, 2011, 2007 and 2005 and has received recognition within the field of ceramics. His studio work was featured on the December 2011 Ceramics Monthly cover article. Additionally he has completed visiting artist-residencies at Tainan National University for the Arts, Taiwan R.O.C., Ohio University’s Woodfire Symposium and Watershed Craft Center’s artists invite artists residency. He serves as the education coordinator for Baltimore Clayworks Mt. Washington campus, a position he has held since October 2000. He maintains an active home studio in the Beverly Hills neighborhood of Baltimore City
Juror’s Statement
I have worked with Shino glazes now for nearly 25 years – nearly half my lifetime and the entirety of my potting career – and still find the Shino glaze family provides a complex visual and textural breadth. These glazes remain highly sensitive to clay body, application, kiln atmosphere, and duration of the firing which in turn allows for tremendous diversity with a touch of serendipity.
Traditional Japanese Shino glaze (16 th Century) contains a high concentration of feldspar which, when fired, produces a thick semi-transparent white glaze. with a semi-gloss surface when fired to approximately 1200°C. Contemporary American Shino glazes – while they have evolved over the last 50 years – remain rooted in this basic chemical formulation with feldspar, soda ash and kaolin remaining central components of the glaze.
Shino glazes are best detailed by their warm earthtone hues of cream and peach. They are at times temperamental, ethereal, sumptuous and tantalizing – a distillation and embodiment of our daily life, experience and relationships.
I owe my potting career to those pioneering American potters who have informed my journey with Shino (such as Malcolm Davis and Warren MacKenzie), who have tested and re-tested, fired and failed only to persevere in their pursuit of this glaze Shino and it’s myriad possibilities. This exhibit seeks to explore Shino works that best illustrate the depth, range, and variations possible with Shino glazes.
Matt Hyleck
Also on Exhibition
Solo Exhibition by Ali Saunders
More information coming soon!
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