Born in Manila, Philippines in 1981 and raised in Australia, Jennifer Oh is a ceramic artist now based between Sydney (on unceded land of the Dharug people), Rome, Italy and occasionally in the United Kingdom. She received a Media and Communications degree from Macquarie University in 2001 before eventually pursuing a vocation in art in 2011. Jennifer Oh’s practice is informed by the varied and itinerant aspect of her background. Her work is informed by the built environments she has encountered across different states and cultures taking cues mainly from the spheres of architecture and visual art. Her pieces focus heavily on form and employ geometry and repetition in order to convey meaning. 

Throughout her practice, Jennifer has had numerous opportunities to fulfil both wholesale and private commissions for small independent boutiques and art gift shops worldwide; creating bespoke tableware and home decor for stores in the United States, Denmark, Italy and Australia.

She was a finalist in the XV International Ceramics Biennale of Manises in 2022 and in 2023 Oh received a Highly Commended nod in the Ceramics Arts Queensland Siliceous Award for Ceramic Excellence for her piece titled The Long Tether.

As of writing, she has exhibited in a number of groups shows such as the Strictly Functional Pottery National in Philadelphia, the International Coffee Cup Competition in Taipei and The Little Things Art Prize, Sydney in 2022 and 2023. Meanwhile 2024 marked her double solo shows Tow The Line with Michael Reid Galleries Australia. in their Murrurundi and Southern Highlands galleries which represents her latest body of work. The show was described as a “dazzling suite of talismanic, torus-shaped sculptures and eye-catching geometric vessels adorned with striking and ultra-stylish graphic motifs.”

She is currently working in Europe and has recently completed her first residency at Villa Lena Foundation, Italy while maintaining her ties with the ceramic community in Australia through residencies, stockists and exhibitions that are due to take place later in 2025.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Inventing Rituals and Creating Meaning Out of the Absurd

As a creator working in three dimensions, I prefer to consider my works as investigations into form and function. My interest lies in our predilection to engage in ritual with objects around us and attribute emblematic properties to them, whether they be extraordinary, banal or personal. Visually my work relies heavily on the use of geometric form and line which I view are the precursors and fundamental building blocks to visual communication and symbolism.

My ceramic work has always been informed by both the multiplicity of my background and my individual and at times indirect responses to the various stimuli of the built environment around me. My work is rooted in the traditional aspects of the craft in terms of technique and construction, although what I find is that, it’s ultimately the interaction between human and artefact that cultivates meaning, whether it be the artist as maker or the public as viewer. I continuously ask the question, how do these mere objects become imbued with value and meaning thus transforming them into our talismans for modern life?

The talismanic aspect of my pieces originates from my Filipino background where amulets or charms known as ‘anting-anting’ (in Tagalog) are associated with folkloristic culture and are closely intertwined with devout Catholic belief systems and iconography assimilated and absorbed through colonialism; like moraine to a glacier. The object becomes suffused with meaning, power and a magical potency that perhaps only the bearer of the talisman may know but bestows them with strength, protection or invincibility. Likewise, my body work thus far seeks to invite viewers and bearers to infuse meaning and potency to these objects to hold space for reflection, connection and the rituals we forge to overcome the everyday.

My recent investigations have taken inspiration from Op Art, Memphis and the dazzle camouflage of the World Wars which has led me to create a collection of works with strong totemic forms decorated with lines. The resulting series titled Tow The Line references the initial nautical inspiration for the works, taken from the dazzle ships that first appeared in WWI coupled with a play on the phrase ‘toe the line’ questioning our ideas of conformity and compliance. Stripes as a motif, with their medieval connotations of deviance have taken a journey towards more ambiguous realms that perhaps these days conjure up sartorial playfulness or seaside gaiety.

With my future work, I seek to continue my investigations into form, taking cues from architecture and the built environment, perhaps incorporating natural worlds too while delving deeper into topics that concern my personal experience as an immigrant, working through issues of colonialism and its consequences.