Ceramics in the art market

During my visit to the latest edition of Rotas Brasileiras, an art fair organized by SP–Arte in August 2024 at Arca in São Paulo, I was both impressed and delighted by the representation of ceramics in many of the booths, underscoring the increasing appreciation for this medium.

Ceramics play a vital role in the sustenance, preservation, and knowledge of the human species. Several, if not all, civilizations have utilized ceramics for one or more purposes related to survival, cultural dominance, and establishment. The rich diversity of indigenous ceramics, particularly from Latin America, including those from regions that today encompass countries like Mexico, Peru, Guatemala, and Brazil, has significant implications for contemporary life and art. This includes productions rooted in African traditions, as well as those from Arab, Portuguese, and Asian schools.

In art, it is no different. Many movements, styles, or artistic schools feature ceramics as a defining and categorizing component of their particularities, as seen in the works of Wifredo Lam, Victor Brecheret, and Pablo Picasso.

Having been exposed to ceramics in Cuba, where this medium is highly valued in education and art institutions, including the Havana Biennial, my experiences there were further enriched and projected in Brazil through exhibitions and my time at the Museum of Modern Art in São Paulo and the Luciana Brito Gallery. This occurred prior to the publication of “Transgressões Cerâmicas Brasil” in 2021, during my tenure as curator of Subsolo – Laboratory of Art in Campinas, from 2018 to 2023, which activated the inclusion of ceramics within the Brazilian artistic landscape.

The independent institution functioned as a true artistic laboratory, organizing various exhibitions, courses, lectures, videos, and workshops, placing ceramics and its processes—both as utility and as a work of art—at the center of discussions. The book, being the first publication of its kind in the country, sparked and strengthened conversations about the inclusion of ceramics as a contemporary artistic medium within the art circuit, the art market, and academic institutions. This publication led to invitations to hold several exhibitions, such as the one at Truth Gym Gallery in Canada in 2023, along with projects in independent spaces and at the Andrea Rehder Gallery in São Paulo—an unwavering partner in this venture.

At this gallery, the exhibition “ARtérias na ceRÂmica”, held in November 2022 and featuring artists from various regions of Brazil under my curatorship, became a milestone in discussions about and around the market. The politics of art and political art were integrated into this context, with various contemporary artistic modalities radiating. Following the exhibition, artists Regina Dutra, Antonio Pulquério, and Sheila Ortega began to be represented by the gallery.

I would like to highlight here some recent examples of exhibitions from galleries featuring artists who incorporate ceramics into their artistic research. In 2022, the Luisa Strina Gallery opened the solo exhibition “A Estatura da Liberdade”, in which Jorge Macchi presented a ceramic work. In 2023, notable exhibitions included “Mar Interno” by Regina Dutra and Alessandra Rehder, as well as “Terra e Fogo, Água e Ar – das memórias que transbordam” by Antonio Pulquério at the Andrea Rehder Gallery. At the Janaina Torres Gallery, the group exhibition “Entroncamento” featured works by Paula Juchem and was curated by Agnaldo Farias (2023).

In 2024, at the Andrea Rehder Gallery: “Abismo” by Rodrigo Pedrosa, curated by Rafael Fortes Peixoto. In the same year, the Luis Maluf Gallery hosted “Oceano Febril”, a solo exhibition by Licida Vidal, curated by Thais Rivitti. The artist’s works were also featured in the group exhibition celebrating the 10th anniversary of the gallery, curated by Ana Carolina Ralston.

Also in 2024, at the Fortes D’Aloia & Gabriel warehouse in São Paulo, Tatiana Chalhoub presented her solo exhibition “Romper o dia, crack of dawn”. At Millan, Lidia Lisbôa exhibited her textiles, drawings, and ceramics. Gomide&Co held a solo exhibition for Megumi Yuasa and currently represents artists Julia Isidrez (who participated in the 2024 Venice Biennale), Shoko Suzuki, Maria Lira, and Francisco Brennand through the Oficina Brennand estate. The Vermelho gallery organized the exhibition “Mudança Elementar” by Ximena Garrido-Lecca. At its headquarters in São Paulo, the Luciana Brito Gallery showcased Héctor Zamora with “As Circunstâncias” (2023), Gabriela Machado with “Cadê o Abre Alas” (2024), and Estúdio Campana with “Eu Escuto” (2024). Meanwhile, the Marília Razuk Gallery selected works by Seba Calfuqueo for Art Basel Miami Beach in 2024.

I emphasize that these are just a few galleries among many that have exhibited works by artists who explore ceramics or represent artists engaged in this type of research.

With the conviction that it is possible to enhance instruction and education, particularly transdisciplinary education, through art, the publication “Cerâmica & interseções: obras comentadas” emerges as a provocation, featuring contributions from professionals from Mexico, Canada, Cuba, Argentina, and the United States. This is the first publication in Brazil that evaluates art in its interdisciplinary relationships and reverberations, using ceramics as a pretext and/or formal and conceptual foundation. The book is currently in the fundraising phase for its printing.

The aim is not to position “Cerâmica & interseções” as “the” definitive publication on the subject, but to raise awareness about the urgency of comprehensive research on ceramics in Brazil and the need for financial support for this purpose, given the richness of indigenous, Afro-descendant, Asian, and other ceramics. The intention is to emphasize and validate through this publication the significance of ceramics in relation to other artistic modalities and techniques, as well as the interdisciplinary nature of this practice.

Comprising five sections, the publication features essays accompanied by images of indigenous ceramics and Afro-descendant ceramics, as well as contributions from artists such as Regina Silveira, Rochelle Costi, Kimi Nii, Julia Isidrez, and Regina Dutra. Concurrently, original texts propose a broad relationship between their areas of expertise and ceramics. Good examples include mathematics, chemistry, curation, and archaeology.

The goal is to provide a consistent, provocative, and diverse publication that connects to other contemporary artistic modalities, serving as a reference to revisit, for instance, the history of humanity through social, political, gender, ecological, and environmental preservation approaches, as well as the art market and individual and collective cultural identities. The publication is part of the conviction that it is possible to create and challenge oneself, expand discussions and decentralized insertions; recognize the art market as a fundamental and solid disseminator within the art system; decentralize and take risks while emphasizing the need for support from public and private entities that believe in and promote education through art, as well as instruction without opportunism and intermittent temporal approaches.