Historically, ceramics have existed on the margins—labeled “craft” or “decorative”—but Katie Lee-Koven says they are increasingly recognized as essential to understanding 20th-century modernism and beyond. This is one reason she was drawn to The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art (NEHMA), where she has been director and chief curator for the past decade. “My background and interests lie in the role of studio ceramics in 20th-century modernism, particularly ceramics in the vessel form, because they are often delineated as craft or decorative,” she says. “Broadly, I have always been interested in art and artists who have been marginalized and deserve attention. So, to learn that an art museum has such an incredible American ceramics collection, mainly in the vessel tradition, alongside the rest of the collection of incredible artworks, some of which have also been left out of mainstream narratives of art history, it was unreal!”

NEHMA was founded in 1982 following a monetary gift from Nora Eccles Harrison, a functional potter whose deep appreciation for the ceramic vessel inspired her to collect works in the form. Her original donation of 400 ceramics helped shape the museum’s identity. Over the decades, the collection has grown to include more than 1,300 pieces, with the vessel remaining central to NEHMA’s acquisitions program. The current exhibition, Holding Space: Highlights from the NEHMA Ceramics Collection, brings renewed attention to this legacy, presenting a selection of historical and contemporary works by 66 artists that explore the vessel not only as a functional form, but as a profound metaphor for care, community, and presence.

“The vessel as a form has so many facets. From a purely functional standpoint, vessels can be utilitarian, but as the field of ceramics has grown over the past century, so has the exploration of what a vessel is,” Lee-Koven says. “Regardless of functionality or implied functionality, a beautiful vessel is often displayed. The title ‘Holding Space’ came from my own thinking about how we ‘hold space’ to give someone space free of judgment and full of compassion and love. I want these vessels to be held in that regard with their myriad expressions with the vessel, while at the same time, they literally “hold space” as a function of being a vessel.”

Curated to coincide with the 2025 NCECA (National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts) conference, Holding Space draws from past exhibitions such as Unearthed and incorporates recent acquisitions, including selections from the Richard Gold gift. “We thought about what people from NCECA would enjoy seeing from our collection, which is a really different way to curate, but it was fun!” Koven says. The result is a vibrant and thoughtful overview of NEHMA’s holdings, albeit just a fraction of the collection. “We did end up giving lots of vault tours,” Koven says, to share the extensive collection with NCECA visitors. “People loved the vault tours.”

NCECA awarded NEHMA this year’s Regional Award of Excellence. The award recognizes organizations that have made significant contributions within the region hosting NCECA’s annual conference while also impacting the field of ceramic arts on national and international levels. Lee-Koven accepted the award alongside Utah State University Professor John Neely, who was named an Honorary Member of the Council, a distinction given to individuals whose work and influence have left a lasting mark on the ceramic arts.

Holding Space: Highlights from the NEHMA Ceramics Collection, NEHMA, Logan, through July 12.

All images courtesy of Katie Lee-Koven.

Shawn Rossiter

The founder of Artists of Utah and editor of its online magazine, 15 Bytes, Shawn Rossiter has undergraduate degrees in English, French and Italian Literature and studied Comparative Literature in graduate school before pursuing a career in art.