TORONTO, CANADA
MARLENE ZAGDANKSI
Leaves of Three
In Leaves of Three (2025) I channel a persistent childhood warning: to avoid plants with three leaflets, a caution against poison ivy. This memory is layered with the rebellious impulse to ignore that advice. With this box I hope to provoke a sense of hesitation or curiosity, inviting viewers to consider the implications of engaging with the box. What does its dark exterior and foliage imply? What might the box contain, conceal - or even unleash? This exploration of risk and curiosity is an important element of my ceramic practice.
Dimensions: 8.3"H x 9"W x 5.3"D
Material: Stoneware, glaze
Artwork ships: beginning october 22nd












Leaves of Three
Artist Statement
My ceramic work is deeply rooted in sensory memories and lived experiences – shaped by encounters with both built and natural environments, and informed by human gesture and form.
Inspired by memory and observation, I typically begin with drawings which I develop in turn into maquettes and sculptures. I approach these as “drawings in space,” embracing material exploration, pushing the limits of the media and encouraging glaze movement and melt. I leave room for chance to shape the final piece. Themes of connectedness, solitude, resilience, loss, fear, and wonder permeate my work.
About the Artist
Born and raised in Montreal, Marlene Zagdanski is a ceramic artist based in Toronto. Her practice is deeply rooted in sensory memories and the lived experiences of both built and natural environments, as well as human gesture and form.
Marlene earned a BFA from Concordia University before pursuing a non-arts related degree and career. In 2015-2016 she joined and completed the final year of Sheridan College’s Crafts and Design Diploma Program, signaling her return to the arts. In 2016 she was selected for and participated in the Project Network residency at the Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Centre, Denmark.
Her work has been exhibited at venues including the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Craft Ontario Gallery, the Apple House Gallery (Skalskor, Denmark) and the Burlington Art Gallery. She is the recipient of awards including Best in Show 2018 and 2019, Fusion Clay and Glass; and the William and Mary Corcoran Craft and Design Award for Ceramics. Her work is held by several collectors and in the collection of the Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Centre, Denmark.
MARLENE ZAGDANKSI
EDUCATION
2017 Anton Reijnders: Professional Ceramics Workshop, Art Gallery of Burlington, Burlington, ON
2016 Project Network Residency, Guldagergaard International Ceramic Residency, Skaelskor,
Denmark
2015-2016 Third (final) year, Crafts and Design Ceramics Diploma Program, Sheridan College, Oakville, ON
2014-2015 Linda Sormin Mentorship, Fusion Clay and Glass, Toronto, ON
2010-2014 Throwing and hand building instruction, Alex Yeung Studio, Toronto, ON
1983 LL.B, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON
1977 BFA cum laude, Studio Art (painting; printmaking), Concordia University, Montreal, PQ
EXHIBITIONS
2023 Other Tigers, The Lost and Found, Toronto, ON
2022 Toronto Outdoor Art Fair, Toronto, ON
2019 Clay and Glass Show 2019, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association, Wychwood
Barns, Toronto, ON
2019 Toronto Outdoor Art Fair, Toronto, ON
2018 Clay and Glass Show 2018, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association, Wychwood
Barns, Toronto, ON
2018 Toronto Potters 20th Biennial Exhibition, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto, ON
(catalogue)
2017-2019 Fireworks, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association, Museum London, London,
ON; Rails End Gallery, Haliburton, ON; Thames Art Gallery, Chatham, ON; Canadian Clay &
Glass Gallery, Waterloo, ON, Art Gallery of Burlington, Burlington, ON (catalogue)
2017 Canadian Craft Biennial, Craft Ontario Provincial Exhibition: Nothing is Newer than
Tradition, Art Gallery of Burlington, Burlington, ON (catalogue)
2017 Clay and Glass Show 2017, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association, Wychwood
Barns, Toronto, ON
2016 Project Network, Guldagergaard International Ceramic Centre, Skaelskor, Denmark
(catalogue)
2016 Toronto Potters 19th Biennial Exhibition, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto, ON
(catalogue)
2016 Small Transgressions, Jonathon Bankroft-Snell Gallery, London, ON
2016 Sheridan Craft and Design Program Graduate Exhibition, Jonathon Bankroft-Snell
Gallery, London, ON
2016 Sheridan Craft and Design Program Graduate Exhibition, Super Wonder Gallery,
Toronto, ON
2016 Sheridan Craft and Design Program Graduate Exhibition, Sheridan Gallery, Oakville, ON
2016 Curio - Sheridan Ceramics Graduate Exhibition, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art,
Toronto, ON
2016 Reflections on Culture and Identity, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto, ON
2015 The Bowl Show, Shop of the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto, ON
2015 Small Transgressions, Craft Ontario Gallery, Toronto, ON (catalogue)
2014 Toronto Potters 18th Biennial Juried Exhibition, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic
Art, Toronto, ON (catalogue)
AWARDS
2019 Best in Show, Clay and Glass Show 2019, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association,
Wychwood Barns, Toronto, ON
2018 Best in Show, Clay and Glass Show 2018, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association,
Wychwood Barns, Toronto, ON
2016 Toronto Potter's Award, Toronto Potters 19th Biennial Juried Exhibition, Gardiner Museum of
Ceramic Art, Toronto, ON
2016 William & Mary Corcoran Craft Award in Crafts and Design – Ceramics
2014 Tucker’s Pottery Supplies Inc. Award, Toronto Potters 18th Biennial Juried
Exhibition, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto, ON
COLLECTIONS
Guldagergaard International Ceramic Centre, Skaelskor, Denmark
Joan Bennett, Toronto, ON
MEMBERSHIPS AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
2010 - 2021 Member, Toronto Potters, Toronto, ON
2010 - Present Member, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association
2016- 2017 Director, Fusion: The Ontario Clay and Glass Association
2015- Present Member, Craft Ontario, ON
Other works from the WHAT HOLDS Exhibition