Olivia Tani

Olivia Tani earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University.  Following graduation, she moved to Minneapolis, MN as a Fogelberg Studio Fellowship resident artist at Northern Clay Center. Olivia continued her engagement in the Minnesota clay community and maintains a studio at Northern Clay Center. 

Through having a private studio in a community clay center, Olivia enjoys the balance between camaraderie and focused work. Conversations about clay happen every day. The liveliness of a communal space keeps her practice growing. Meeting other artists and gathering for events fuels dialogue in the field of ceramics, which is beautifully abundant in the Minneapolis area. 

Olivia has exhibited and taught around the country. In 2023, she was a visiting artist at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. In 2025, she presented at The Alabama Clay Conference and Ohio University’s Atmospheric Firing Symposium. In 2026, she teaches at Arrowmont School of Crafts in Gatlinburg, TN, and at the Gaya Ceramic Arts Center in Bali, Indonesia. Olivia’s writing on her techniques is found in several Ceramics Monthly publications. She was recently selected as a 2024 Emerging Artist in Ceramics Monthly’s Emerging Artist Contest.  

“I approach utilitarian objects as a vehicle for sculpture. While developing a form, the interplay between utility and sculpture drives my choices. I celebrate the way that my artwork can serve a function while also standing alone as an art piece in a domestic environment. 

Deconstructing three-dimensional forms into their two-dimensional blueprints inspires my slab building with clay. I build voluminous forms using slab components made from paper templates. Movement, proportion, and silhouette guide my hands. By using enclosed forms and careful contours, I evoke a sense of fullness in three dimensions. 

Beyond the slab, I make wheel-thrown vessels, which undergo dramatic alterations. I apply my slab-refining techniques to thick pots, and use reductive carving to reveal my desired shape. I remain in conversation with the tradition of pottery, but aim to infuse it with my language of line and trilateral symmetry.

I finish my surfaces with slips and fire in an atmospheric soda kiln. This process centers focus on the form while the kiln delivers swathes of matte crystals and glassy edges. Differences in sheen interact with planes to emphasize light and shadow playing across the architecture. Creating an aesthetically, structurally, and functionally successful form drives me in the studio.”