Zoe Kaplan is a queer, Jewish, gender-liberated ceramic artist from Chicago, Illinois. Working with clay began as a pastime as a child taking neighborhood park district classes but has since transformed into a means of expression and community, mode of accessibility, and reparations. Since becoming Northern Clay Center’s 2021-2022 BISQUE Resident, they have been using their resources to explore a new relationship with clay and the firing process to form creations that are kinetic and dynamic. Recently, Zoe has been incorporating their values of doikayt, hereness, to invoke pieces that connect to their roots and others in a way that explores desires for grounding in a reality that is deeply diasporic. In their pieces, this takes the form of sincere, simplistic gestures of longing, self-exploration and a display of what is often hidden.

Zoe’s style is eclectic and evolving - most recently they have been interested in pursuing soda firing as it offers lessons in accepting unpredictability and relinquishing control. The material vulnerability of soda firing allows for cohesion and dissonance - highlighting the unpredictable nature within the habitual. Zoe hopes to see their work living and maturing in people’s homes – in cabinets, on coffee tables, windowsills, as centerpieces, and resting on drying racks. Ceramics should serve as a spark of play in the mundane, allowing both the piece to shine and mold to its surroundings. You may walk into Zoe’s studio and see five different styles at play which comes from an abundance of creativity and desires for exploration. Zoe is looking forward to sharing more aspects of their identity and values and hopes that their pottery pulls people in, sharing a kiss with others in the way that the soda flames lick its pieces.