Bio

Nanxi Jin (She/Her) is an interdisciplinary artist and educator who specializes in ceramics media. Originally from Jingdezhen, China, she is currently based in Chicago. Her work investigates cultural identity and belonging, rooted in Jingdezhen’s ceramic traditions and shaped by twelve years in the U.S. She explores material, process, and discipline while questioning authorship, value, and cultural context in contemporary practice.

Nanxi obtained a BFA in Art & Design from Alfred University in 2020. She graduated from the School of Art Institute of Chicago in 2022. Nanxi’s work has been exhibited internationally, including at NYCxDesign during NYC Design Week (2021), Women’s Made Gallery in Chicago (2023), SOIL in Seattle (2024), and Paris Design Week in France (2025). She received residency fellowships, including the Ox-Bow School of Art, the Vermont Studio Center Fellowship, and the Anderson Ranch Arts Center Fellowship. Her work “Various Vases” has been collected by the Guangdong Shiwan Ceramic Museum in China.

Artist Statement

I work with clay. For me, clay is not just a medium, but a way of life. Every glaze formula and every kiln firing carries generations of inherited knowledge, and that reverence for craft remains the foundation of my practice today. I work with a range of techniques such as hand-pressing, hand-building, slip-casting, and throwing. My work explores the complexity of cultural identity and belonging, drawing on my upbringing and twelve years in the U.S. My time in Jingdezhen, China, surrounded by centuries of ceramic history, instilled in me a deep respect for material, process, and discipline.  

In contrast to my early influences, my twelve years in the United States have pushed me to challenge tradition, to question authorship, value, and cultural context. This experience has encouraged me to take risks: to use fragments, discarded forms, and even failure as materials; to blend installation with object-making; and to treat ceramics as a medium for personal and cultural storytelling. Through my work, I aim to advance my understanding in ceramics and create a cross-cultural exchange of artwork, aesthetics, and techniques.