Martha Grover

2025 State of Clay Juror’s Statement

It has been my pleasure and honor to serve as juror for the 2025 State of Clay exhibition. The submissions showcased the wide range of possibilities that clay encompasses. They spanned many techniques, styles, types of clay, and firings.

It was a privilege to view each one of them.

To have the show represent as many artists as possible, I made the decision that only one work by an individual artist would be accepted. The selection process was challenging because many pieces showed great mastery of the medium. I looked for pieces that made me feel astonished, awed, joyful, inspired, connected, or amazed by what is possible with clay. I selected pieces that made me think and connect to the artist and their vision. The works chosen not only exhibited technical skill and originality, but also emotion, ranging from passion to humor. I have simultaneously tried to highlight many firing styles and methods, all with the intent to make the show live up its name “The State of Clay.”

Unfortunately, and inevitably, many good works did not make the final round of selection. I am grateful to all those who applied. Your work was considered and valued. If your piece was not selected, it does not mean that it had less merit, but that space constraints allowed me to select only a predetermined number of pieces. Less than 20% of the works submitted were able to be chosen for the exhibition space. Given those odds, it takes bravery to compete, but it is critical to the strength of the exhibition to have a broad range of pieces to select from. Please keep putting your work out there in the world.

My goal was to put together a show that displays the best of what is possible in ceramic functional ware, sculpture, installation, and figurative work. I hope that as you view the exhibition in its entirety, you too will be inspired by this medium that I love, in all its varied interpretations.

Martha Grover - Juror - 2025 State of Clay Show Martha Grover is a functional potter, living in Bethel, Maine, creating thrown and altered porcelain pieces. She attended Bennington College in Vermont, where she received her undergraduate degree in Architecture. After going to Syracuse University in New York as a fifth year student in Ceramics, she decided to pursue a graduate degree in clay. In 2007, Martha received her MFA in ceramics from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. She was awarded the Fogelberg Fellowship for a residency at the Northern Clay Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Sage Scholarship for a summer residency at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, Montana. Martha completed a year long residency at Red Lodge Clay Center in Red Lodge, Montana in August 2009. She received the Taunt Fellowship at the Archie Bray Foundation in 2010.

Her work can be found at the Red Lodge Clay Center, the Archie Bray Foundation, the Clay Studio of Missoula, Schaller Gallery, 18 Hands Gallery, Crimson Laurel Gallery, Charlie Cummings Gallery, and Cedar Creek Gallery. Her work has been published in Ceramics Monthly, Pottery Making Illustrated, Clay Times, 500 Pitchers, 500 Platters and Chargers, and 500 Vases. Martha's work was featured on the cover of Ceramic Monthly’s May 2010 issue.

https://www.marthagrover.com