Who We Are
Penelope Van Grinsven Lilly Zuckerman
We are ceramic artists, educators and co-founders of Above Board Ceramics. With many mutual friends and shared experiences stretching over the last decade at places like Penn State University, The Clay Studio of Missoula, MT, University of Colorado, Boulder and Colorado State University, we formed a friendship at light-speed in 2019! Establishing Above Board Ceramics seemed like a natural move for us. We share the interest of curating a functional tableware exhibition while promoting new and diverse makers in the field.
In medieval times, the dining table was a plain board that hung on the wall when not in use. When food was served it was brought out and laid across diner’s knees. The word board eventually came to signify not just the dining surface but the meal itself, as in room and board. And an honest person - someone who keeps their hands visible at all times - was said to be aboveboard.
Our Above Board tableware exhibition has its own spontaneous nature to it - we’re bringing down the board and welcoming travellers from all over to come to the table for the short duration of the annual ceramics conference. With these disparate guests together at one fantasy meal, we are most excited about capturing a moment in the contemporary ceramics scene. Who are the artists, both established and emerging that attend this meal? How do they interpret function and what experiences as makers do they bring to such a meal? How do we make a seat at the table for new makers? How do we promote BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ makers? How do we thoughtfully, transparently, and equitably participate in the system of monetary gallery transactions and commissions? Above Board Ceramics is asking these questions and continually striving to re-answer them.
Our name & our mission
ABC 2021:
This chart represents the demographic make up of artists who we invited to the 2021 Above Board exhibition.
We are committed to actively addressing racial disparities in the clay community by working to build a more equitable exhibition that showcases a diverse group of makers.
Demographics for 2023 coming soon:
ABC 2022:
This chart represents the demographic make up of artists who we invited to the 2022 Above Board exhibition.
ABC 2022 is a combination of invite and free application. Our goal is to remove barriers of participation with a simple and free application. Please consider applying at the “Apply to ABC 2023” tab.