Paula Murray (Web Exclusive)
- Ornamentum
- Apr 11
- 8 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
This article is provided by Rue Pigalle, a travel and events-based community for women that champions craft in Canada and globally. To learn more about their craft patronage initiatives, click here.
Medium/technique: Ceramics, porcelain
Location: Chelsea, QC
Website: https://www.paulamurray.ca/
Instagram: @paulamurrayceramics
An Ottawa native and elected member of the International Academy of Ceramics since 2017, ceramist Paula Murray creates porcelain vessels that examine themes such as trauma and resilience, control and submission, and the interplay between the visible and invisible. Her work’s forms, textures, and colours invite viewers to engage on both a visual and emotional level.
Read on to learn more about Paula's creative practice, inspirations, and the themes she explores in her work.
1. How would you describe your art and artistic practice?
I am a full-time artist, working primarily in porcelain. My practice includes both installations and sculptural objects, where conceptual ideas are expressed through material and process. I love vessels, our long history of intimate connection with them and how they are often interpreted as a metaphorical symbol of life.
2. Can you walk us through your creative process, from initial idea to sourcing materials to the physical act of making?
The heart of my practice is concerned with transformation. My work originates in an exploration of forces beyond our control – how they shape us and how we respond. Porcelain, with its responsiveness and fragility, is an ideal material for investigating themes of trauma and resilience, control and submission, and the dynamism of the visible and invisible.
I work with porcelain as a casting slip, carefully mixed from raw materials sourced from the earth. Over time, I have refined a recipe that allows the clay to respond dynamically to the internal stresses I introduce. I deliberately push the material to its limits, creating fissures and movement within the walls of the vessel. This tension is heightened through the interplay of clay and fine strands of fiberglass, an intentional act that causes the material to move, twist, and fracture as it dries. Rather than exerting complete control, I embrace the piece’s agency, allowing it to dictate part of its own evolution.
This dance between manipulation and response defines my approach. As the porcelain deforms and cracks, I intervene, layering glazes and additional clay to accentuate these transformations. Through multiple firings, surfaces emerge that mimic the textures of earth and skin: veins, scars, and the subtle imprint of time.
3. Tell us about a favourite piece you’ve created and why it’s so memorable.
You Are Me is one of my most cherished works, for its poetic nature and for the personal connection I have to its title. The installation featured seven large vessels, each in varying states of fracture and healing, appearing to float on a ring wrapped in muslin. I was thinking about the cyclical nature of life – how, at any moment, we can find ourselves in an entirely different condition, influenced by unpredictable circumstances.
The title, You Are Me, emerged from a deeply moving exchange with my sister-in-law, who lives with MS. Despite our closeness, our lives have followed vastly different trajectories due to the changes and chances of the world. At one point, she faced a life-threatening battle with severe pneumonia and had to make a crucial decision about her treatment. When I asked her what she truly wanted – since it was, after all, her life to live – her response was simple yet profound: But you are me. Those words encapsulated everything I was exploring in this work: the interconnectedness of our experiences, the fragility of existence, and the blurred lines between self and other.
This installation was originally commissioned by the Ottawa Art Gallery and went on to tour four other venues across Canada before being invited to the Taiwan International Ceramic Biennale in 2018.
4. Reflecting on your career, what do you hope viewers take away from your art? How do you envision your work contributing to the broader discourse in contemporary ceramics?
I hope that my work is open ended enough that viewers can find their own point of connection. If it holds some mystery in its making, and encourages reflection about the preciousness of life, that would make me happy. I believe that my best chance of connecting with other hearts is to be deeply connected with my own.
Art serves as a mirror, reflecting the complexities of society. The exploration of identity is a significant and ongoing discourse, revealing both the richness of our differences and the common threads that connect us. While discussions around identity can sometimes become polarized, I see my work as a contribution that emphasizes our shared humanity and the connections that unite us.
5. Your interest in the nature of reality has been informed by the Baha’i faith. How do spiritual influences inform the narratives and intentions behind your work?
My studio and spiritual practice are symbiotic, each essential to the other's survival. Spiritual study has shaped my view of life’s dual purpose: personal growth and contributing to the world. My work explores self-evolution while reflecting on connection, resilience, and compassion; concepts I see as responses to the fractures in both personal life and society.
Clockwise from top left: “First Light,” 2023, 34 cm L x 33 cm H x 33 cm D // “Vibrant Space,” 2022, 37 cm L x 20 cm W x 36 cm D, Magazine Cover: La revue de la céramique et du verre, France. // “Skin Deep,” 2024, 33 cm L x 33 cm W x 32 cm D // “Through the Mist,” 2023, 25.5 cm L x 41 cm W x 30.5 cm D, 13th MINO Japan exhibition. All photos by Paula Murray.
6. Living by Meech Lake and spending years sailing have deeply connected you to nature. How do these experiences shape the organic forms and themes present in your porcelain works?
Ocean sailing magnifies our vulnerability to nature and the need for skillful navigation. Each sunrise, unchanged by the world’s events, inspires me. I’m privileged to witness shifting wind, water, and light, experiences that shape my artistic process. My practice engages with natural forces like gravity, heat, and moisture, which actively shape my forms. Just as nature transforms the landscape, these elements guide my work, deepening my connection to the whole. My colour palette, too, evolves with the seasons, mirroring nature’s rhythms.
7. Could you share insights into your creative process around delicate crackling and fibreglass overlays in your sculptures, and any challenges you have encountered as a result of the innovations you have pioneered with porcelain?
I’m drawn to pieces that appear broken yet stand strong, embodying fragility and resilience. I have followed my heart by working with clay, and embracing failure has brought clarity, along with new possibilities. Years of research and experimentation have deepened my mastery, teaching me valuable lessons in detachment and the illusion of control. As my experience grows, so does my ability to express ideas in unexpected ways.
8. Your work often addresses themes like trauma, resilience, and the visible versus the invisible. Can you elaborate on how these concepts are embodied in your recent pieces?
In my recent work, I explore the tension between strength and fragility, the near osmosis between spiritual and physical experiences. The delicate movement of my forms, the interplay of light and shadow, and the way forms shift in response to internal and external forces all speak to resilience in the face of trauma. I am particularly drawn to what is unseen: the histories, emotions, and energies embedded in objects and spaces. By working in harmony with natural elements like heat, gravity, and time, I allow my pieces to hold traces of transformation, revealing both the visible and the invisible layers of human experience.
9. You've been active in the development and operation of part of a community pottery workshop. How do communal spaces for making and learning pottery contribute to the craft community, and what challenges and benefits have you observed in these settings?
When I was in university, uncertain whether I was on the right path, I had access to a community ceramics studio that was open 24/7. That opportunity changed the course of my life, and I will always be grateful for it. Communal spaces provide access to creative exploration for people of all ages, offering experiences they might not otherwise have. While some may go on to pursue a career in ceramics, these spaces also play a vital role in fostering social connection, artistic growth, and mental well-being within the community. They serve as hubs where ideas are exchanged, skills are developed, and artists have the opportunity to teach and mentor others.
10. Gender disparities continue to exist in the art world, particularly concerning access to exhibition spaces and inclusion in national collections. Have you encountered such challenges in your career, and what are your views on addressing these inequities?
I haven’t experienced challenges of inclusion as explicitly gender-based but rather as a result of not being connected to an academic setting and the professional networks that stem from it. The art world often relies on these institutional connections for access to exhibition opportunities and national collections. Addressing inequities in the field requires broadening the pathways through which artists gain recognition, ensuring that talent and vision, not just institutional affiliation, shape opportunities for exposure and inclusion.
Left to right: “Strata of Yellow & Red,” 2022, 41 cm L x 31 cm W x 24 cm D // “Blue Veins,” 2022, 17 cm L x 13.5 cm H x 32.5 cm D, Photos by Paula Murray.
11. What is your perspective on the current state of craft education in Canada, especially regarding its availability and funding? What consequences might arise from limited access to craft education?
Craft programs are facing significant pressure, as seen in the recent closure of the jewelry program at George Brown College. Craft is a vital cultural and economic contributor, yet its value is often overlooked. Mastery takes time, and programs must balance technical training with a relevant conceptual framework to prepare students for sustainable careers in contemporary craft.
Limiting access to craft education denies the diversity of gifts people have that contribute to a vibrant society. It threatens the preservation of traditional skills, stifles innovation, and narrows career pathways for emerging artists. Without proper training opportunities, fewer makers will be equipped to thrive, leading to a decline in both cultural heritage and the economic vitality of the craft sector.
As arts education continues to be cut from primary and secondary school curriculums, community-driven initiatives are stepping in to fill the gap. I am inspired by programs like the Youth Craft Academy in Prince Edward County, which provides accessible craft education to kids in rural and underserved areas. By offering hands-on learning in ceramics, woodworking, and other traditional crafts, these grassroots efforts create vital pathways for skill transmission and creative development. They highlight the power of community-driven approaches in nurturing emerging makers and preserving essential craft traditions.
12. Is there anything else you’d like Ornamentum readers to know about your process, practice and/or works?
In recent years, I have invited the public to participate in my installation practice. My Hands, My Heart, is a project about visualizing the power of small gestures. It has been presented in two distinct contexts. The first was a two-day conference where people gathered to share ideas on contributing to the betterment of the world. The second took place over two months as part of a solo exhibition, where the public was invited to participate.
The outcomes were fascinating. At the conference, the project culminated in a cohesive installation, where the diversity of contributions was reflected in the variety of hands squeezing the clay. In contrast, the solo exhibition revealed a more individualistic approach—most participants chose to shape their own objects as their contribution to a collective piece.
To document the intention behind this project, I created a short video assembling the pieces from the conference on the ice in front of my home.
Comments