Osa Atoe

I never knew what my pots meant until I sent them out into the world. Functional pottery like mine gains meaning through use and interaction. I am curious about the qualities that make an object’s beauty transcend time and culture. With my pottery, I add myself to the archaeological continuum along with every pot ever made and I do that by referencing historical forms. The processes of colonization, geographical displacement and globalization have left many of us without traditional practices. I am presently in the process of creating a vocabulary of forming, decorating and firing techniques that link my work to a lineage of potters both contemporary and historical, extending back to Nigeria where my parents immigrated from in the 1970s. In this way, the pottery I make reflects the values I was raised with, namely, respect for the wisdom of elders and the identification of oneself within family and community.