Linda Hartsema
she/her
Tracing Clay
This body of work explores the material culture of clay, tracing the movement of people, materials, and processes of making. Clay bears the imprint of time and memory – through the touch of the maker and the skills they passed down across centuries and continents. Each vessel carries the accumulated knowledge of countless people, from the earliest potters to those shaping clay today.
The work is inspired by the artist’s time living in China – where she first worked with clay and developed an interest in porcelain – and her subsequent research into the history of Delft Blue ceramics. Viewers are invited to reflect on the stories embedded in the clay and the many hands that have left their mark across time and place.
Installation view, NCAD Works 2026.
Imprints 1-4, paper porcelain clay dust sediment on blackboard paint, dimension vary.
Display unit, birch ply with terracotta clay insert and paper porcelain sculptures.
Paper porcelain on terracotta clay.
Maiolica, paper porcelain vessel painted with black underglaze and decorated with sgraffito imagery from Piccolpasso’s 'Li tre libri dell'arte del vasaio' (The three books of the potter's art - on the making of maiolica in Italy mid 16th C). Glazed.
Delft, paper porcelain vessel painted with cobalt oxide depicting the workers at Royal Delft making Delft Blue ceramics.