ABOUT
I would like to acknowledge that I am on the traditional land of the first people of Seattle, the Duwamish People past and present, and honor with gratitude the land itself and the Duwamish Tribe. I am a guest on this land in my home and my art practice, and I participate in paying Real Rent.
Photography by Holly Stevens // https://www.aqueerphotog.com
BIOgraphy
Anika Major is a Texas-born artist living in Seattle, Washington. She received her BFA in ceramics and painting from the University of North Texas in 2018. After graduating, she moved to Seattle to work at Rat City Studios where she has spent the last several years working as a studio assistant for Deb Schwartzkopf, and teaching clay classes in the greater Seattle area. She is now the studio manager at recently opened sister studio, Rain City Clay, where she teaches and maintains a full-time studio practice. Anika combines her love of clay and figure painting in her colorful painted pots created using thrown and handbuilt methods of production. The shapes of her pots imitate the lumpiness of the human body, and her surfaces come alive with expressive and flamboyant heroines, exploring narratives of romance, individuality, and queer domestic comforts. Growing up in Texas, Anika developed an affinity for the symbolism of the feminine, overly glamorized cowgirl. Her work is currently developing larger forms and narrative vessels exploring romantic themes between cowfolks and other tender imagery.
(Resume PDF)
Click to view a full list of exhibitions, professional experience, and more.
CV
EDUCATION
2018 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Ceramics, Drawing and Painting, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
2018 Santa Reparata International School of Art, Summer Study Abroad, Florence, Italy
Professional Experience
2022 - Present Studio Manager, Rain City Clay, Seattle, WA
2022 - Present Instructor, Rain City Clay, Seattle, WA
2019 - Present Instructor, Moshier Community Art Center, Burien, WA
2021 - 2022 Instructor, Saltstone Ceramics, Seattle, WA
2021 Instructor, Pottery Northwest, Seattle, WA
2020 - 2022 Studio Manager, Rat City Studios, Seattle, WA
2019 - 2022 Instructor, Rat City Studios, Seattle, WA
2019 Studio Assistant, Penland School of Crafts, Workshop: Tricks of the Trade with Deborah Schwarzkopf, Bakersville, NC
2018 - 2022 Studio Assistant to Deborah Schwartzkopf, Rat City Studios, Seattle, WA
2017 - 2018 Studio Assistant, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
2015 - 2018 Figure Model, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Lectures/Workshops
2023 Handbuilt Boxes with Surface Decoration, Clay By The Bay, San Francisco, CA
Working with Underglaze, Virtual Workshop, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
2022 Figure Painting with Underglaze, Virtual Workshop, Pocosin Arts School of Fine Craft, Columbia, NC
2021 Virtual Artist Talk with UNT Clay Guild, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Cup Curious, Virtual Workshop, Seattle, WA
2020 Painting On Clay, Virtual Workshop, Seattle, WA
2019 Whatcom Community College, Bellingham, WA
Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, Bellevue, WA
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023 June Featured Artist, Good Earth Pottery, Bellingham, WA
2022 Tender Rodeo, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Gainesville, FL
Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
Selected Exhibitions
2023 Last Call VIII, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
Above Board Ceramics 3rd Annual Exhibition, Online Exhibition
2022 Depicted in the Mud, Sweetwater Center for the Arts, Sewickley, PA
Margarita Cup Invitational, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
tender / queer, Clay Art Center, Port Chester, NY
Say Something: Tactile Voices in Clay, Saratoga Clay Arts Center, Schuylerville, NY
Surface, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
3rd Annual Spring Exhibition, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
Last Call VII, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN
Introductions, Brace Point Pottery, Seattle, WA
2021 Rat City Studios Community Show, Good Earth Pottery, Bellingham, WA
Sarah’s Spirit Squad, Saltstone Ceramics, Seattle, WA
2020 Gifted: From the HeART, LUX Center For the Arts, Lincoln, NE
Cup: The Intimate Object XVI, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Gainesville, FL
Making Life Sweeter, Rat City Studios, Online Exhibition
Rat City Studios 3rd Annual Community Cup Showcase, Dubsea Coffee, Seattle, WA
Queer and Dear, Saltstone Ceramics, Seattle, WA
Rat City Studios Shakedown: Vases, Online Exhibition
Mug Madness 2020, Saltstone Ceramics, Seattle, WA, Judge: Chanakarn Semachai and Adrienne Eliades
Dirty South Cup Call, River Oaks Square Arts Center, Alexandria, LA*
2019 Queer and Dear, Saltstone Ceramics, Seattle, WA
Rat City Studios: Plates and Platters, Proletariat Pizza, Seattle, WA
Rat City Studios: Community Cup Showcase, Dubsea Coffee, Seattle, WA
Rat City Studios Shakedown: Citrus, Online Exhibition
2018 Community Cup Showcase, Dubsea Coffee, Seattle, WA
SRISA Student Show, Santa Reparata International School of Art, Florence, Italy
2% Bentonite, Cora Stafford Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Like, Seven Years, Lightwell Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, Solo Exhibition
Drawing and Painting Senior Invitational, Lightwell Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
2017 Clay Guild Expo, Union Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Persona, Corporate Gallery, San Antonio, TX
Function, Cora Stafford Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Singlefare 4, Highline Stages, New York, NY
Hot and Sweaty, 500x Gallery, Dallas, TX
Good Libations, Cora Stafford Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
2016 Rhizome, Brickhaus Gallery, Denton, TX
Junior Invitational Showcase, Cora Stafford Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
2015 Core Drawing Show, Lightwell Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Art Beyond Sight, Student Collaborative Project, Meadows Museum, Dallas, TX
2014 San Antonio Collegiate Student Exhibition, San Antonio Art League Museum, San Antonio, TX
REpRESENTATION
Charlie Cummings Gallery, Gainesville, FL
Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN