BALTIMORE, MD – Baltimore Clayworks is proud to present Contemporary Porcelain: From Tradition to Innovation, on view from March 21 through May 23, 2026. This dynamic exhibition explores the enduring legacy of porcelain while showcasing the bold and inventive ways artists are redefining this historic material today.
Long celebrated for its refinement, translucency, and technical precision, porcelain has deep roots in global traditions. Contemporary Porcelain: From Tradition to Innovation brings together a distinguished group of contemporary ceramic artists who push the boundaries of the medium, highlighting porcelain’s remarkable versatility. Through sculptural forms, functional works, and concept-driven pieces, the exhibition invites viewers to reconsider what porcelain can be, and how tradition can spark transformation rather than limit it.
Presented concurrently, Elements of Mechanisms examines the intersection of form, function, and movement through works inspired by mechanical systems and engineered structures. Gears, joints, frameworks, and repeating components become a visual language, revealing how complex systems are built from simple, intentional parts. Together, the works encourage viewers to consider how mechanisms shape the world around us; from the tools we rely on daily to the invisible systems that organize modern life. Elements of Mechanisms highlights not only how things work, but how structure, repetition, and motion can become powerful vehicles for artistic expression.
Rounding out the spring exhibitions, the Community Arts Spring Showcase honors the creativity, perspectives, and shared stories of Baltimore Clayworks’ vibrant community. This season’s showcase highlights an exciting arts integration collaboration with 7th grade students from Pimlico Elementary/Middle School and Sinai Hospital through the Medical Detectives Program. Through this collaboration, students bring their scientific exploration into the ceramics studio, demonstrating how art and STEM can intersect in meaningful and transformative ways.
All three exhibitions open with a reception on Saturday, March 21, 2026, from 4:00 – 6:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public. Visitors are encouraged to experience the full range of exhibitions, from internationally recognized ceramic artists to emerging student voices within the Baltimore community.
For more information, please visit www.baltimoreclayworks.org or contact Baltimore Clayworks at 410.578.1919 or email info@baltimoreclayworks.org.
Contemporary Porcelain: from Tradition to Innovation Participating Artists:
Sam Chung, Elaine Coleman, Tom Coleman, Julia Galloway, Martha Grover, Bryan Hopkins, Cliff Lee, Heesoo Lee, Steven Young Lee, Kyounghwa Oh, Yoko Sekino-Bove
Elements of Mechanisms Participating Artists:
Ken Baskin, Tony Borchardt, Mike Cinelli, Andrew Clark, Gerard Ferrari, Seth Green, Tim See
About Baltimore Clayworks
Baltimore Clayworks was founded by nine artists in 1980. Our mission is to develop, sustain, and promote an artist-centered community that provides outstanding educational, residency, and collaborative programs in the ceramic arts. We offer classes and workshops for adults and children, host short and long-term residencies for emerging artists, present rotating exhibitions along with a retail shop featuring the work of local and internationally recognized ceramicists, and Baltimore Clayworks utilizes the universal medium of clay to engage under-resourced communities in and around Baltimore.
Artwork by Sam Chung