Welcome to this week’s Feature Artist Friday! Today we are taking a look at Bahamian artist Anina Major.

With a practice that includes ceramic sculpture along with video and installation, Major has become well known for her captivating works. In them, she explores the relationship between place and self in an effort to create a sense of belonging. This investigation was in part motivated by her decision to establish a home outside of the place where she grew up. 

To convey these ideas, Major uses the language of craft to reclaim ideas and relocate displaced objects, and leans into the crossover point between identity and nostalgia. In her ceramic works, there is a strong reference to the language of weaving and basket making, which is combined with unexpected forms and glazes. The resulting works are rich in texture and complexity, and create the impression of functional objects where the specific use remains elusive.

Mayor completed her MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2017 and has gone on to receive numerous awards and residencies. These include the Watershed Summer Residency Zenobia Award, Mass MoCA Studio Artist Program, the Fine Arts Work Center Visual Arts Fellowship, and the Elizabeth Foundation of the Arts Studio Membership Program, among others. She has also exhibited internationally, including in the US, the Bahamas, and Europe.

If you would like to learn more about Anina Major’s exciting work, be sure to check out her links below:

Website: https://www.aninamajor.com

Do you know another artist you’d like to see celebrated? Comment down below! Artists can also list themselves on our Online Ceramics Directory, so other artists and art-enthusiasts from all around the world can find them!