Untitled 01

Liisa Salonen + Elizabeth Salonen

Liisa Salonen and Elizabeth Salonen, mother and daughter collaborators, merge the seductive qualities of clay with industrial mold-making techniques in the collection What We Carry. The collaboration traces back to the 1940s, when Liisa’s mother studied at Pewabic Pottery in Detroit. In 2023, the two returned to their legacy, bringing the story full circle.

The work makes visible the act of carrying, and questions what is ours to carry and what is not. In this collection, unglazed mannequin heads support a variety of hand-polished orbs in the act of carrying. The mannequin surfaces retain scars and visible seams — quiet records of experience. Salonen and Salonen are designers and artists working in Canada and the US.

Size: 16.25"H × 9.4"W × 9.4"D 
Material: Black stoneware, black iron oxide terra sigillata