Exhibition showcases ceramic artists at Kilkenny's Design & Craft Gallery

A new exhibition,  From the Ground Up: The Transformation of Irish Clay opens at the National Design & Craft Gallery today (Saturday, March 21) and runs until July 18.

Bringing together 42 of Ireland’s leading ceramic artists, the exhibition, curated by John Goode,
represents over one thousand years of combined creativity and craftsmanship.

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Collectively, they showcase the strength, diversity, and vitality of Irish ceramics today, with each artist contributing a unique voice and vision.

Celebrating technical mastery and innovation across traditional, contemporary, and experimental approaches, the exhibition’s pieces reflect the deep connection between material, maker, and place.

Grounded in Irish earth yet open to the world, From the Ground Up: The Transformation of Irish Clay, highlights clay as a medium continually renewed by the imagination and skill of today’s makers.

Mary Blanchfield, CEO, DCCI said: “We’re delighted to welcome ‘From the Ground Up: The
Transformation of Irish Clay’ to the National Design & Craft Gallery. The participating artists reflect
and position the medium of ceramics as a vital contributor to Ireland’s contemporary design and craft
landscape. This exhibition embodies DCCI’s commitment to championing Irish design, celebrating the
creativity, skill, and vision of Ireland’s ceramic makers, and the distinct voices, practices, and regional
traditions that make Irish ceramics so unique. It highlights DCCI’s ongoing investment in the future
education of ceramics, with the launch of applications opening for the new DCCI Academy Ceramics
Skills and Design degree course. We celebrate the hard work and dedication of these artists, and we
look forward to what the future holds.”

Tracing the evolution of Irish clay from deep local roots to an international presence, the exhibition
spans generations and techniques and the artists’ practices embody both continuity and
transformation. These ceramic artists have exhibited widely across Ireland internationally, including
throughout Europe, the United States, South America, Japan, China, and India demonstrating the
global significance of Irish ceramics as a discipline grounded in locality yet engaged in worldwide
conversations on art, design, material culture, and sustainability.

John Goode, curator, writer and ceramic scholar added: “Irish ceramics are experiencing a
remarkable moment. This exhibition celebrates artists who are pushing clay into new territories of
meaning, form, and expression—affirming the global significance of Ireland’s vibrant ceramic
community.”

Admission to the exhibition is free.