Click here to browse all CLAYflicks videos.

Search CLAYflicks

Watch Preview:

 

To watch this video in full screen mode, please click the full-screen icon (farthest button to the right at the bottom of the video player).

In this episode of Talking Clay, Simon Levin sits down with Jennifer Ling Datchuk to discuss the exhibition "The Shape of Power: Stories of Race and American Sculpture," which is on view at the Smithsonian American Art Museum through September 14, 2025. The exhibition has been in the national spotlight after it was specifically referenced in an executive order entitled "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History." As an artist featured in the exhibition, Jennifer shares her background, themes in her art, views on censorship, and the importance of representation in the art world. You can view the full 41-minute video in the player to the left.

The opinions expressed here are those of the artists and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Ceramic Arts Network or The American Ceramic Society

Total runtime: 41:00

About the Author

Simon Levin

Simon Levin Simon Levin has been working in clay since 1990, when an elective ceramics course in college changed the direction of his life, leading to an M.A. and an M.F.A from the University of Iowa. He is a full time studio potter working exclusively with wood firing. His award winning work is exhibited internationally, and appears in several contemporary ceramic books. Simon is a writer for many ceramic journals, and in 2013 he traveled to Taiwan as a Senior Fulbright scholar researching local materials. As a kiln builder Simon has built wood fired kilns for both US colleges and universities as well as schools in Taiwan and China. Between 2005 and 2018 his apprenticeship program started has trained and influenced 17 young potters. A resident of Wisconsin for 18 years, Simon has recently moved to Pawnee, Illinois, where he is currently re-establishing his pottery. To learn more about him or see more images of his work, please visit www.simonlevin.com.
Unfamiliar with any terms in this video? Browse our glossary of pottery terms!
Load more comments
Thank you for the comment! Your comment must be approved first
avatar
Log In or Sign Up to be able to comment