137 Art Barn
University of Manitoba
(Fort Garry Campus)
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3T 2M6
Education
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB
Master of Fine Art, 2014–2016Dankook University, Seoul, South Korea
Bachelor of Fine Arts (Major in Ceramics), 2000–2004
Creative work & Research
Grace Han’s practice examines the spaces between cultures, languages, expectations, and ceramic traditions through material and process, shaped by her experience of moving between South Korea and Canada.
She works across a range of ceramic processes, including wheel throwing, mould-making, slip-casting, and hand-building, often combining them within a single body of work. Her approach moves between large-scale, labour-intensive forms and smaller, repetitive porcelain pieces. These shifts in scale and process allow her to explore different relationships between control, time, repetition, and material behaviour.
A significant part of her practice draws from Onggi, traditional Korean earthenware vessels known for their large-scale forms and the labour-intensive processes involved in their making. During her time in Korea, she trained with master potters and learned techniques that have historically been male-dominated. These experiences continue to inform her work, not through direct replication, but through adaptation and reinterpretation within her own practice.
Alongside this, she works with multiples of small porcelain elements, often bringing them together with larger forms. Through this combination, she explores fragmentation, accumulation, and the idea of constructing a whole from many individual parts.
Across her practice, ceramics becomes a way to navigate tension, transformation, and the space between opposing conditions, using process and material as a language rather than something fixed or resolved.
About Grace
Grace is a ceramic artist who received her original training in Seoul, South Korea. She successfully obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Dankook University, specializing in traditional Korean ceramic techniques and skills. Following her education, Grace worked for several years at one of Korea’s largest ceramic companies, an experience that expanded her understanding of ceramics beyond academia.
Grace’s work has been recognized through several awards and opportunities, including being selected as an NCECA Emerging Artist and receiving the NCECA Helene Zucker Seeman Fellowship for Women. She was also awarded the Artist Residency for established and mid-career artists at the Gardiner Museum in Toronto. Her research and studio practice have also been supported through grants from the Canada Council for the Arts, Manitoba Arts Council, and Winnipeg Arts Council.
Alongside her studio practice, Grace has participated in residencies, exhibitions, conferences, and workshops across Canada and internationally. She has also been invited to present demonstrations, lectures, and artist talks at various institutions and conferences, sharing her research and approaches to ceramics.
Grace currently serves on the board of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) as a Director at Large.
Solo Exhibitions (Refereed/Curated)
2025 Fragments, Mary E. Black Gallery, Halifax, NS
2023 Trace of Freedom, Aceart Inc., Winnipeg, MB
2021 Touch the Conversation, Saskatchewan Craft Council Gallery, Saskatoon, SK
2019 Touch the Conversation: Two Selves, The Yuill Gallery at Medalta, Medicine Hat, AB
2019 Touch the Conversation: Ferment NewOld, Kiln #2 at Medalta, Medicine Hat, AB
2016 Two Paths, Two Identities, One Individual, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB
Group Exhibitions
2026 Contenere La Quiete (Holding Quietness), c.r.e.t.a. rome Gallery, Rome, Italy
2026 The Lunar Project, Main Line Art Center Gallery, Haverford, PA, US
2025 Untitled, Nantucket Island School of Design & Arts Gallery, Nantucket Island, MA, US
2023 NCECA Multicultural Fellowship Exhibition, DAAP Galleries, Cincinnati, OH, US
2022 (Two-person) Hansoom, Art Gallery at Evergreen, Coquitlam, BC
2021 The 2021 NCECA Emerging Artists, Eutectic Gallery, Portland, OR, US
2021 Crafted Vancouver: Crafted Interiors 2021, North Vancouver, BC
2020 Critical Function 2 (NCECA 2020), Visual Arts Center of Richmond Gallery, Richmond, VA, US
2019 Coming up next, Alberta Craft Council Calgary Gallery, Calgary, AB
2019 En Route, Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery, Waterloo, ON
2019 Northern Blend, Augsburg University Art Gallery, Minneapolis, MN, US 2019 Shift, Aceart Gallery, Winnipeg, MB
2018 Beyond the Brickyard, Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT, US 2018 Fireworks, Thames Art Gallery, Chatham, ON
2018 Seated, Alberta Craft Council, Edmonton, AB
2017 Fireworks, Rails End Gallery and Art Centre, Haliburton, ON
2017 Crafting the Future, Great Hall, OCAD University, Toronto, ON
2017 DISH, Medalta, Medicine Hat, AB
Artist Residencies
2026 c.r.e.t.a. rome, Rome, Italy
2024 Gardiner Museum Artist Residency, Toronto, ON
2019 Medalta, Historic Clay District, Medicine Hat, AB
2018 Clay Revival, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Banff, AB
2017 AK Ceramic Center, Icheon, South Korea
Presentations & Workshops
2026 Main Presenter, Canadian Clay Symposium: “How Hard Can It Be?”, Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, Burnaby, BC
2026 Freedom As Method: A Week-Long Ceramic Intensive with Grace Han, Art Gallery of Burlington, Burlington, ON
2025 Demonstrating Artist, WEDGE Australian Ceramic Triennale, Fremantle, WA, Australia
2025 Main Presenter, Women in Clay, FUSION Conference, Kingston, ON
2024 Workshop, Matters of Size: A Contemporary Take on Technique, Scale, and Stature, Bali, Indonesia
2024 NCECA Makers Space Demonstration, Throwing Large – Using Korean Techniques, Richmond, VA, US
2023 Visiting Artist, Concordia University, Montréal, QC
Awards & Grants
2025 Falconer Emerging Researcher Rh Award, University of Manitoba
2024 Concept to Realization Grant, Canada Council for the Arts
2023 Canada-Korea Connections Fund, Canada Council for the Arts
2023 Create Grant, Manitoba Arts Council
2022 Concept to Realization Grant, Canada Council for the Arts
2021 NCECA Emerging Artist Award
2021 NCECA Helene Zucker Seeman Fellowship Award for Women
2020 Create Grant, Manitoba Arts Council
2019 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics Finalist
2018 Major Arts Grant, Manitoba Arts Council
2017 NICHE Award Winner in Ceramics
2017 FUSION Emerging Artist Award
2017 MINO International Ceramics Competition Finalist, Japan
2016 NCECA Multicultural Fellowship Award
Publications
Han, G. (2024). NCECA 2024 Maker Space: Grace Han - Touch the Conversation. 2024 NCECA Journal, 44, 106–107.
Han, G. (2021). NCECA 2021 Emerging Artists: Grace Han - Touch the Conversation. 2021 NCECA Journal, 41, 40–43