Curriculum Vitae
Osa Atoe
943 Patterson Dr.
Sarasota, FL 34234
Statement
Pottery helps us find each other. The pots I make highlight our commonalities rather than differences. These symbols of idealism are a visual and tactile respite from the division, acrimony, and injustice of the world.
Form and surface decoration techniques link my pottery to a lineage extending back to Nigeria, where my parents immigrated from in the 70s, and elder ceramicists like David MacDonald, Jabulile Nala, including historical Nigerian potters like Ladi Kwali. Most vessels are wheel-thrown but emulate the volume and proportion of ancestral coil-built pots. The carved geometric patterning is inspired by the pots made by Ibo women in Nigeria and the body adornment of Zulu women in South Africa. I use red stoneware clay, which I carve as my main mode of surface decoration and I fire my work in both electric and wood fired kilns. While I primarily draw on Nigerian aesthetics, the commonalities in pottery from all over the world fascinate me.
Education
2018: Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, Ceramics, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA
2007: BA, Sociology, Portland State University, Portland, OR
Alternative Learning
2023: Clay Cohorts with Lisa Orr
2022: Jabulile Nala, Mudflat Pottery School & Studio, Somerville, MA
2016: Workshop with Jen Allen, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
Apprenticeships
2014: Studio Assistant, Rachael DePauw Pottery, New Orleans
2013-2014: Work Trade, Hands in Clay, New Orleans
Classes & Demonstrations
2024: Featured Presenter, Alabama Clay Conference, Orange Beach, AL
2023: Harvard Ceramics, “Africa Adorned: Surface Decoration Techniques Inspired by the Continent” with David MacDonald, Allston, MA
Studio T/M, “Coil Building,” Gainesville, FL
2022: Arrowmont School of Crafts, “Pattern Play” with Jen Allen, Gatlinburg, TN
Sarasota Clay Company, Intermediate Wheel Throwing, Sarasota, FL
2021: Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN (Virtual)
The Potters Class (Virtual)
2020: POT Studio, Los Angeles
2019: Throw Me Something, Baton Rouge, LA
The Knock Knock Museum, Baton Rouge, LA
2018: The Journey Lab, Baton Rouge, LA
Selected Publications & Podcasts
2023: “Osa Atoe on connecting to oneself and others through clay,” Tales of a Red Clay Rambler Podcast
“Vessels,” American Craft
2022: “This Florida Potter Finds Inspiration From Around the Globe to Inform Her Terra-Cotta Wares,” Southern Living
2020: “Navigating an Evolving Market (Part I),” The Studio Potter
“The Joy of Making,” Ceramics Monthly
2019: “10 New Female Ceramic Artists We Love,” martha stewart
Service
2021-present: Founder and Chair, Kaabo Clay Collective
2021-2022: Ceramics Mentor (independently)
Solo Exhibitions
2022: The Sea Is Alive in Me, Art Center Sarasota, Sarasota, FL
Invitational Group Exhibitions
2024: Portrait of a Kiln, Faith Arts Village Orlando (FAVO)
The Medium is the Message, NCECA, Southside Contemporary Art Center, Richmond, VA
2023: Clay Holds Water, Water Holds Memory, NCECA, Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati, OH
Clouds Like Mountains, Faith Arts Village Orlando (FAVO)
Winter Warmers, Good Earth Pottery, Bellingham, WA
2022: I Am the Clay Art Center Sarasota, FL
Teapot IX Biennial Baltimore Clayworks
2021:Contemporary Pattern, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
2020: Pots from a (Social) Distance, Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis
Critical Function 2, NCECA, Visual Arts Center, Richmond, VA
2019: Art of the Cup Ogden Museum, New Orleans
Collaborative Companions, NCECA, Minneapolis
2018: ONE & ONLY: Gifts Made by Hand, John Michael Kohler Arts Center,
Coffee & Clay Pottery Northwest, Seattle
You Can Touch, LSU Post-Bacc Show, Baton Rouge, LA
American Graphic, NCECA, Samantha Skelton Gallery, Pittsburgh
Ceramicidal Tendencies, NCECA, Bunker Projects, Pittsburgh
2017: Art of the Cup, Ogden Museum, New Orleans
2016: Wishlist: Art of Sharing, 5 Press Gallery, New Orleans