To hold a clay artifact is to touch some of the earliest traces of human culture; to work with clay is to engage a material that carries geological memory into our planetary future.

Language and earth are both malleable. Both change over time–exploited, reused, alchemical. Witnessing earth-making phenomena in a single firing, ceramics become geological.

In this workshop we will explore the material poetics of clay, engaging with its tactile geological knowledge. Together we will trace the transformations that shape clay across deep time, discover the distinct qualities of different kinds of clay, and create ceramic impressions from found objects and personal artifacts—learning foundational hand-building techniques while making our own speculative fossils.

NINA VROEMEN

Nina Vroemen is a multidisciplinary artist and educator born in Gatineau, Quebec, and based in Tiohtiá:ke (Montreal). Scientific and surreal, their work intertwines the elemental and the mythological. Through experimental methods spanning video, performance, ceramics, collage, and installation, they practice storytelling, revealing intimacies in the unexpected. They hold an MFA in Sculpture and Ceramics (2024) and are currently pursuing a PhD in Humanities at Concordia University with a focus on research creation and environmental justice.