I’m deeply aware of the connection between maker, object and user. Living on Hawaiʻi island, nature feeds my creativity. I’m moved by the complexities of our multicultural fabric and how it’s woven into the land. This exploration is carried into the clay, where I celebrate an East Asian aesthetic alongside the beauty of imperfection. Passionate about form and texture, I am drawn to primordial and abstract shapes to create timeless vessels that evoke a story and tap into another world.
BIO
Suzanne Wang was born in Taiwan and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She developed a passion for ceramics as a teenager, and studied drama with an emphasis in theater scene design from San Francisco State University. She received her Master of Fine Arts degree from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, NY.
Wang’s experience includes professional scene design in New York and San Francisco, as well as product development for giftware and home decor firms in Hong Kong and China. She has traveled to multiple tea-growing regions in Asia while working for a small tea company, deepening her appreciation and understanding of tea culture which is reflected in her clay forms.
In 2017, she became the first female and Western potter to complete a one-year apprenticeship in Mashiko, Japan with master potter Ken Matsuzaki. Wang currently lives and works from her home studio in rural Hakalau, on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi.
CV
1996—Graduated with a Bachelors of Arts Degree in Drama, emphasis in theater scene design. San Francisco State University, CA
2000—Graduated with a Masters of Fine Arts in Design for Stage and Film, Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, NY
2010—Moved to the Big Island of Hawaiʻi, and began taking pottery courses. Hilo Community College, Hilo, HI
2014—Established home studio for pottery in Wailea/Hakalau, HI
2016—One year apprenticeship with master potter Ken Matsuzaki. Yuushin-gama, Mashiko, Japan
2018—Complete 4-month online course in Understanding Glaze Chemistry. Instructor: Matt Katz of Ceramics Materials Workshop
2018—Teacher for weekend workshop: Hand Building Forms with Molds and Patterns. Donkey Mill Art Center. Kona, HI
2019, Spring: Clay teacher for Harmony Ed home-schooled students. Weekly art sessions at EHCC, Hilo, HI
2019—3 week live-in training at Daihonzan Chozen-ji zen temple, with a focus on pottery. Oahu, HI
2020—Artist Talk at the Donkey Mill Art Center in Kona, HI
2020—Teacher for weekend workshop: Hand Building Forms with Molds and Patterns. Donkey Mill Art Center. Kona, HI
2020—3 week live-in training at Daihonzan Chozen-ji zen temple, with a focus on pottery. Oahu, HI
2022 - Zonta micro grant recipient, awarded to women entrepreneurs on Hawai‘i Island
EXHIBITIONS
2023—Portal 2: Hawaii Island Juried Art Competition (group), Firehouse Gallery, Kamuela, HI
2023—Phase Change: Porcelain in Flux (group), Donkey Mill Art Center, Kona, HI
2019—Black & White Exhibit (group), Kristie Fujiyama Kosmides Studio & Gallery, Hilo, HI
2019—Formation: Ceramics Exhibition (group), East Hawaiʻi Cultural Center, Hilo, HI
2019—The Visible Hand: Hawaiʻi Craftsmen, Statewide Juried Exhibition (group),
Honolulu Museum of Art School, Honolulu, HI
2018—Libation: Ceramics Exhibition (group), East Hawaiʻi Cultural Center, Hilo, HI
2018—Hawaiʻi Craftsmen 51st Annual Statewide, Juried Exhibition (group),
Honolulu Museum of Art School, Honolulu, HI
Recipient: Paul Loo Memorial Award
2018—Art in Hand: Contemporary Craft Exhibition (group), Wailoa Art Center, Hilo, HI
2017—Big Island Clay Exhibition (group), East Hawaii Cultural Center, Hilo, HI
2017—Keio Dept Store, Crafts Salon (solo), Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan
Press and Publications
2022—“Keola Magazine” - Suzanne Wang: Ceramicist Comes Full Circle (feature), May issue
2020—“Craft Artists” - A Practical Career Guide. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, (feature)
2017—The Collective Podcast: Interview with Ash Thorp, (feature)
2017—“Mashiko Apprentice” - Hawaiian Skies 11-min documentary, (feature), Hawaiian Airlines In-Flight program