Beyond Utility: How Contemporary Ceramics Speak Many Languages

Ceramics-Triennial-UNICUM-03.jpg, default, The ‘Forms of Meaning: Contemporary Polish Ceramics’ exhibition at the 6th International Triennial of Ceramics UNICUM 2026 in Ljubljana, 15 May 2026,

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This year’s edition of the International Triennial of Ceramics UNICUM is on in Ljubljana until September. It is the sixth edition of the event, and this time, works by young Polish artists are one of the core elements of the exhibition.

The International Triennial of Ceramics UNICUM in Ljubljana dates back to 2009, when the first ever exhibition displaying contemporary ceramic art was opened in Slovenia’s capital. The initiator of the Triennal was Dragica Čadež Lapajne, a sculptor and visual artists as well as an advocate of clay as a fundamental sculpture material. When she proposed the establishment of a triennial, she was drawing inspiration from the work of Gaetano Ballardini, an Italian ceramicist and promoter of traditional methods in manufacturing and craftsmanship, who, in 1908, founded the International Museum of Ceramics (MIC) in Faenza. For centuries now, this Italian city – from whose originated the word ‘faience’ – has been an important centre for ceramics worldwide. Here, clay is considered a material meant for creating everyday objects and artworks alike.

Between form & function

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Opening of the exhibition ‘Forms of Meaning: Contemporary Polish Ceramics’ at the 6th International Triennial of Ceramics UNICUM 2026 in Ljubljana, 15 May 2026, Center Rog Creative Hub, Ljubljana, photo: Wera Pawlak / IAM

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In the previous years, the triennial mainly placed emphasis on the artistic dimension of the works. This year’s edition, however, has opened a new chapter in the history of the event, with a large portion of the main exhibition devoted to everyday ceramic objects, their physical traits and properties. Curator Anja Radović explains that the exposition’s new part concentrates on the ‘responsible use of materials, production processes that employ new technologies, alternative methods of firing clay, experimental techniques of glazing and decorating as well as strategies for reducing or reusing ceramic waste’.

The goal of this year’s triennial, then, isn’t to display finished everyday objects but rather to show how artists and designers relate to the challenges of contemporary times as well as clay’s capacity to inspire and suitability to experiment with, and reflect on, design.

The exhibition, opened on 14^th May 2026 in the new creative space Center Rog, bears the title Beyond Use, which signals its preoccupation with phenomena that transcend the traditional understanding of ceramics, presenting works that redefine its utility and functionality. An open call invited creators and designers to submit their proposals. The jury – composed of Ann Van Hoey from Belgium, Susanne Joker Johnsen from Denmark and Rok Oblak from Slovenia – received 218 projects by 140 artists from 34 countries.

Contemporary Polish Ceramics at the 6th UNICUM International Ceramics Triennial 2026 in Ljubljana – Image Gallery

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A significant portion of the exhibition consists of works by thirteen Polish artists and designers. Titled Forms of Meaning, the Polish showcase was assembled under the curatorial supervision of Mika Drozdowska. She selected the works to complement the overarching idea behind the triennial, contributing to reflections on how the material, and the attitude towards the material, are transformed together with the shifting context of contemporary times. ‘The exhibited works showcase different ways of thinking about function: as a relationship, an experience, as a system or space. What they share is sensitivity to how objects function in everyday life – how they’re used, touched, repaired and remembered’, Drozdowska explains.

Clay is a natural material, ‘derived from the earth’. Working with clay requires focus and precision, at the same time it carries the risk of failure, since the effect can’t be fully controlled. ‘Ceramics was always close to life – present in daily gestures, rituals and uses. In the Polish context, it developed simultaneously in industry and studio art, in serial and unique production’, the curator explains, emphasising the multidimensionality of the material. It’s used in mass production of everyday objects, but it’s also an inspiration for artists. In the time of the climate crisis, ceramics also becomes a topic in the debate on environmental responsibility – since it’s derived from nature, no factories are required to produce it, but at the same time, it’s difficult to recycle.

New content of ceramics

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Center Rog Creative Hub, Ljubljana, May 2026, photo: Anna Cymer

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One of the key goals of Triennial UNICUM 2026 is to broaden the context in which ceramics function. The Polish artists’ exhibition fits well with this notion: in many ways, the objects it displays are in conversation with both the material itself and the reality of their creators’ work. Dominika Kulczyńska and Aleksandra Pulińska touch upon these subjects in an interesting way in their piece The Seeder. It’s an installation that encourages viewers to create their own clay ‘seed bombs’, which can then be dispersed, for instance, in places with little or no greenery. The artists created a stand for moulding clay globes with seeds inside of them as well as a ‘machine’ made of connected containers through which water flows. In their own words:

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After making the clay globes, participants can wash their hands in a special washbasin that forms a part of the installation. The water flows through cascaded containers and filters made of handmade paper, demonstrating the process of clay sedimentation and the purification of water, which can then be reused. With time, the paper becomes covered with coloured sediments and begins to retain the seeds, which, owing to the humidity, begin to sprout. As a result, the washbasin also becomes a germination plant and, together with the transforming paper, a trace of the process and an art object in its own right.

Several of the works presented at Forms of Meaning refer to reusing the waste and scraps produced as a side-effect of working with clay. Until recently, the belief was that they are unsuitable for repurposing; nowadays, craftspeople experiment with them increasingly often. In her 2025 dissertation project, Lena Majsiak developed an original material: ceramic foam which can be repeatedly reused. At the exhibition, she also presents a module folding screen made using this material, showcasing its versatile character, which fits into the idea of circularity.

Anja Marschal, in turn, uses ‘waste’ – leftover clay, scraps of enamel, unsuccessful results of firing, and other similar elements – as material for her works. The artist turns them into ‘constellations of fragments’, which, when combined, create new modes of aesthetic expression, overcoming the traditional desire for an ‘ideal object’ and transgressing the boundaries of habitual forms.

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The ‘Forms of Meaning: Contemporary Polish Ceramics’ exhibition at the 6th International Triennial of Ceramics UNICUM 2026 in Ljubljana, 15 May 2026, Center Rog Creative Hub, Ljubljana, photo: Anna Cymer

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Meanwhile, the design strategy of the studio Zbiór (Collection) can be described as creative upcycling. The studio’s founders, Iga Staszczak and Antonina Wolska, describe their work in the following words: ‘We combine vintage objects with original, multi-purpose forms, giving new life to items from years ago’. The designers compose ceramic sets which comprise their own works as well as already existing objects dug out in attics. In this way, they both gain a new, interesting context, and every set takes on a unique character.

The artists from Zbiór reach for the past in a very literal way, giving new life to old objects. However, Forms of Meaning also features other works inspired by memories and emotions. Natalia Kopytko showcases ceramic works which she refers to as an ‘archaeology of childhood’ – their forms derive from recollections, associations and feelings. Their point of departure is the artist’s own reflection on the garden as a natural space which humans nevertheless strive to shape.

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Similarly, pieces designed by Karina Marusińska combine familiar, functional forms with a personal register of memory. Marusińska’s china plates bear a pattern resembling the shape of potato peels as a recollection of her grandmother’s wartime experiences – she survived imprisonment in a Nazi German forced labour camp thanks to potato peels taken out of animal feed.

Meanwhile, Aleksandra Liput derives inspiration from her own internal journeys towards self-knowledge and regeneration. Her works originate with the symbolism of a cave as a place of shelter, seclusion, and a space of looking inwards. Inspired by this notion, Liput creates spatial ceramic objects, hanging forms that may evoke associations with stalactites on one hand and, on the other, with eggs hidden in cocoons. All kinds of primal, sensual references are legitimate here.

Memory, play, reflection

Artists and designers remain aware, however, that form, structure, and shape are crucial elements of the art object. Bartosz Brylewski, for example, runs a dialogue with material, experimenting and searching for new forms. At the Ljubljana exhibition, he’s showcasing objects that balance functionality and sculpture, whose unusual, porous, mineral surfaces make one think of volcanic rocks or eroded stone. It’s the artist’s way of blurring the boundary between what’s human-made and what’s been made by the forces of nature.

Poland's New Renaissance in Clay

The character of the material also forms the core of works made by Huba Studio. The founders, Jakub Ciemachowski and Piotr Kołakowski, attach great significance to deep focus on, and slow work with, the material. They source and process their clay themselves, they do the firing in wood-burning stoves, and one of the tools they use is… the passage of time.

Whereas Huba Studio enters a relationship with time, Paweł Olszczyński crafts objects through which he establishes a relationship with the audience: by combining ceramics, painting, and drawing, he creates works that go beyond the constraints of traditionally understood functionality. A similar idea, albeit executed through very different means, can be found in the works of Iga Staszczak, a part of whose dissertation project is being presented in Ljubljana. Staszczak explains: ‘I subject to analysis the complex connections between play, consumption, food, and money. I explore the significance of toys in people’s lives and the role of hedonistic attitudes in the shaping of consumer culture’. In the fabulously colourful, attention-drawing ceramic elements one can notice the forms, seemingly unrelated, of a decorated cake and a children’s toy. This way, the author wants to encourage the viewers to reflect not only on the experience of play, broadly understood and applicable also in adult life, but also on the changeability of the objects’ functions.

Present-day issues

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Center Rog Creative Hub, Ljubljana, May 2026, photo: Anna Cymer

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The pieces presented at Center Rog prove that creators using ceramics as their medium are interested in similar subjects regardless of the place where they work. The Spanish artist Marta Armanda Rodriguez is showing pieces which combine traditional functionality with jokes, irony, and the breaking of stereotypes. Charlotte Becker from Germany and Eva Conci from Italy explore the physical properties of clay and experiment with the material, aiming to find new uses for it. The Slovenian creator Anamarija Dimovska transgresses aesthetic boundaries, crafting objects which gain new meanings by evoking associations with destruction. Barbara Gogala from Serbia, Sara Guerreiro from Portugal, Philip Kenny from Ireland, and Sandra Prami from Finland employ classic, functional ceramic forms in seeking dialogue with social transformations and our changing ways of life. The past, too, can be an inspiration – Virginia San Fratello from the USA, Valentina Stocco from Italy, and Nika Šantej from Slovenia opt for archetypal methods of working with clay and endow their objects with similarly archetypal forms.

This year’s International Triennial of Ceramics UNICUM successfully demonstrates ceramics’ capacity to speak many languages as well as the multitude of ways ceramics can comment on contemporary issues and phenomena. The exhibition showcases how the medium – still unfairly and too often associated exclusively with functionality – can be used to create new narrations, to experiment, to transcend aesthetic and formal boundaries. Finally, however, the triennial helps showcase that traditional forms and shapes can still be interesting, inspiring and intriguing.

Translated from Polish by Anna Potoczny

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