Culture Days | 3 Works: Magdalene Odundo on Form

Culture Days is a national celebration of arts and culture, taking place annually at the end of September. Each year, thousands of free, participatory arts and culture events are held in hundreds of communities across Canada. New in 2020, Culture Days has been extended beyond one weekend to a 4-week run: September 25th – October 25th!

As a special Culture Days event, we’re sharing a recent online artist talk with Dame Magdalene Odundo DBE, part of our “3 Works” digital series hosted by Chief Curator Sequoia Miller. On September 17, Odundo discussed three of her artworks in connection to the theme “Form”.

About the Artist

Born in Kenya before moving to the UK as a student in 1971, Magdalene Odundo is an acclaimed ceramic artist, whose work references ancient making traditions from across the globe. A major exhibition at The Hepworth Wakefield in 2019, ‘The Journey of Things’, presented historical and contemporary art selected by the artist alongside Odundo’s elegant ceramic, as well as her prints, drawings and glass installations. Her work can be found in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the British Museum, London; and the Art Institute of Chicago. Odundo has also dedicated much of her career to art education, acting as a lecturer and mentor to many younger artists and encouraging them to explore ceramic art in their own practices. From 2004–14 she was Professor of Ceramics at the University for the Creative Arts. Odundo is now Professor Emerita and was made Chancellor of the university in 2018. Magdalene Odundo was made a Dame (DBE) in the Queen’s New Year Honours for her contribution to art and art education.