Toronto

FAYE HADFIELD

Happy Vase in Honeydew

$4,400.00
Exhibition Submission Statement

I work with porcelain in dialogue with the Rococo period of the 18th century, when the material was rare and highly prized. European factories such as Sèvres and Meissen became known for their ornate, decorative vessels - objects that signified taste and offered escapism through ornament and references to the natural world. My work revisits this history through a contemporary lens.

My face pots use the vessel to explore identity and human complexity. Their humorous yet prickly expressions contrast with glossy, seductive surfaces, creating a tension between appearance and interior experience. These works become entities in their own right and communicate emotions often concealed and suggest a process of self-acceptance.

Rococo-inspired ornament animates the surface, functioning both as embellishment and as a form of armour. In this way, my works reflect how we continue to shape and present ourselves.

Porcelain is central to this exploration. Its luminous surface holds colour and detail with precision, yet reveals every flaw. I embrace this sensitivity, allowing surfaces to shift between rough and refined, controlled and unpredictable.

Dimensions: 12"H x 9"W x 6"D

Material: Porcelain with Gold Lustre

Artwork ships: June 22, 2026 (when exhibition closes)

Happy Vase in Honeydew

Faye Hadfield, 2025
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Artist Statement

Through the face pots I question the complexities of human nature and identity. The humorous yet often prickly characteristics of the works stand in contrast to the seductive, glossy glaze, creating a dichotomy that is both otherworldly and inviting. This tension draws out a confrontive feeling, questioning the delicate balance between surface allure and the crude tactility of clay as a material. 

​I see the face pots as their own entities, serving as a metaphor for self acceptance, and are communicators of emotions we often hide.  

My research in 18th-century design in shown in the decorative elements of the face pots, a time where ceramics were crafted to conform with the extravagant design styles of the Rococo and Baroque movement. Similarly, we today "style" our appearances, attitudes, and behaviors to align with the media we consume, these decorative elements act as both an armor to our feeling, as well as flamboyant characteristics.  

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About the Artist

Artist cv

FAYE HADFIELD

Education:  

The University of Iowa – MFA Ceramics 2023 – ongoing.  

School of the Damned 2020 - 2022.    

BA Contemporary Arts practice Bath Spa University 2015 - 2018   

(1 Semester Erasmus Exchange program at The Kunst University Linz – 2017)   

Residency’s:  

Ceramics Suro June - August 2025.

Graduate Resident at Clay Shed Bristol: September 2021 - December 2022.   

44AD Resident Artist: August 2018 - September 2019.  

Permanent Collections:  

‘Scary Vase in Tropical Purple’ OMM, Odumpazan Modern Museum, Eskişehir, Turkey. 

  Solo Exhibitions:   

2025  ‘Face Pots’ Solo Exhibition, Ana Mendieta Gallery, The

University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA

​2021 ‘Hard faced’ in collaboration with Sam Blackwood curated

by Bhav Bhella Enclave gallery, Deptford London, UK.

​2019 ‘Scorched’ Solo Exhibition at 44AD Artspace, Bath, UK. 2025

Exhibitions 2025:   

November 2025 - Wild Whimsy: The Fantastical Natural World, View Arts Center, Old Forge, NY

September 2025 - Personal Mythologies, Te Paske Gallery, Northwestern College, Orange city, IA

March 2025 - Paris Design week, The Tuileries Paris, curated by Florian Daguet-Bresson. 

May 2025 - Alive & Unfolding, a Contemporary Ceramics Exhibition curated by Ceramics Now at Ceramic Art Andenne’s Triennial of ceramics – Belgium.

​September 2024 - November 2025, “Creatures of Comfort” OMM - Odunpazarı Modern Müze Turkey  ​

October 2025 - Ceramic Art Fair in Paris, La Maison de l’Amérique Latin, curated by Florian Daguet-Bresson. 

Exhibitions

2024: 

January 2024 - Florian Daguet Bresson Gallery opening, Paris, France. 

February 2024 - NOMAD St Moritz, Switzerland.  

April 2024 - Culture Objects ‘THE END: Expanded Field Art’, New York.  

April 2024 - ‘Small Favors’ at the clay Studio, Philadelphia.  

October 2024 - Paris Art and Design, Berkley Square, London.   

September 2024 - ‘2024 University of Mississippi National Juried Show’ (Honorable Mention)   

September 2024 - July 2025 - “Creatures of Comfort” OMM - Odunpazarı Modern Müze Turkey  

 2023 

March 2024 - Collectible Art Fair, Brussels. 

March 2023 - Paris Design week, the Tuileries, Paris curated by Florian Daguet-Bresson. 

October 2023 - Paris Art and Design Fair curated by Florian Daguet-Bresson, Berkley Square, London.   

September 2023 - Hastens exhibition curated by Florian Daguet-Bresson, Rue de l'Université, Paris. 

 2022 

March 2022 - ‘Exposed Material’, SIDE Gallery, Barcelona. 

April 2022 - ‘Don't Drink the Rain’ Galerie Wolfsen, Denmark.    

April 2022 - Paris Art and Design, curated by Florian Daguet-Bresson, the Tuileries, Paris.    

April 2022 - September 2022, SIDE Gallery Casavelles Annual Exhibition, Casavelles, Spain.   

July 2022 - ‘Out of Nowhere’, Soho Revue, London, UK.     

October 2022 - Paris Art and Design, presented by Florian Daguet-Bresson, Berkley Square, London.   

December 2022 - ‘Christmas 21’ - Galleri Sandberg & Galerie Wolfsen, Denmark.  

 2021  

July 2021 - ‘Ceramics now’ Galerie Italienne, Paris.   

December 2021 - ‘Vivacité’ Galerie Italienne, Paris.   

 2020 

May 2020 – ‘A Touching Gesture’ FlatPack space, Oxfordshire Uk.  

June 2020 - ‘Scheeming’ Function Suite, London, Uk  

 2019 

February 2019 - ‘Hard faced’ in collaboration with Sam Blackwood curated by Bhav Bhella Enclave gallery, Deptford London, UK.   

March 2019 - ‘What we are made of’ 44AD ArtSpace, Bath, UK 

March 2019 - ‘Major Conversations, The Industrial Narrative’ Platform A Gallery Middlesbrough, UK.   

May 2019 - Bath Society of Artist Annual Exhibition, Bath, UK.  

June 2019 - ‘Crying with Laughter ‘, Freehold projects, Leeds, UK.   

October 2019 - ‘Major Conversations: The Industrial Narrative’ The Turnpike, Leigh, UK.   

 2018 

July 2018 - ‘Coda’ OXO tower Wharf Barge House, London, UK.   

July 2018 - Stockton Contemporary, Stockton, UK.   

June 2018 - New Designers, London, UK.   

August 2018 - ‘True stories’ at 44AD Arts Space, Bath, UK.    

October 2018 - The Affordable Art Fair Young Graduates exhibition, Battersea, UK.   

November 2018 - ‘IOUAE Spanish City’, Whitley Bay, UK.   

 2017 

June 2017 - ‘Rundgang ‘Exhibition at Kunst University, Linz, Austria.   

June 2017 - ‘Black Lotus’ Exhibition at TAU Gaming, Middlesbrough, UK.    

August 2017 - ‘Baugründe’ VKB gallery, Gmunden, Austria.   

October 2017 - ‘Trashy?’ Edition: Verein für Aktuelle Kunst und Kultur Graben 7, Linz, Austria.   

 Awards   

2024 - Honorable mention September 2024 - University of Mississippi National Juried Show 

2019 - Harry Walker Young Artist Award - Bath Society of Artist Annual Exhibition.   

2018 - Bath Spa Global Citizenship Award.   

2018 - Pot Clays prize, Bath Spa Candidate.    

 Publications   

Article - It's Nice That 24th January 2020. https://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/faye-hadfield-art-240120  

Other works from this Exhibition