Presented as part of the 6th International Ceramics Triennial UNICUM 2026 in Ljubljana, Forms of Meaning examines contemporary Polish ceramics through the intertwined perspectives of materiality, memory, and social relation. Curated by Mika Drozdowska in collaboration with Slovenian curator Anja Radović, the exhibition brings together artists whose practices challenge conventional understandings of ceramics as merely functional or decorative objects. Instead, ceramics emerges here as a medium deeply embedded in bodily experience, cultural history, and systems of collective meaning.
Beginning from the premise that ceramics have always existed in close proximity to everyday life, the exhibition traces how the function of objects is shifting in contemporary culture. While ceramic forms continue to serve practical purposes, they increasingly operate on emotional, symbolic, and relational levels. Through sculptural works, experimental design, and research-driven practices, the participating artists explore how material objects can register intimacy, labour, ritual, and social transformation.
The exhibition also reflects on the specific history of Polish ceramics, shaped by the tensions between industrial production and studio craft, repetition and singularity. This dual legacy continues to inform contemporary approaches to clay, where each object becomes both a physical form and a record of human and material interaction. Bringing together works by Bartosz Brylewski, Aleksandra Liput, Lena Majsiak, Anja Marschal, Karina Marusińska, Natalia Kopytko, Paweł Olszczyński, Iga Staszczak, Dominika Kulczyńska, Aleksandra Pulińska, Huba Studio, and Zbiór, Forms of Meaning foregrounds ceramics as a living and evolving cultural language.
The exhibition is organised by Center Rog and the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as part of the International Ceramics Triennial UNICUM 2026.
Find out more: 6th International Ceramics Triennial UNICUM 2026
