Artist Elliott Kayser’s work is featured in the group ceramic show “Animalia” at the BBAC in April.
By: Mary Genson | Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle | Published April 2, 2026
BIRMINGHAM — From March 25 to 28, Detroit was the host of the 60th conference of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, and that show has yielded two inspired ceramics exhibits that will be on display at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center through April 30.
“Having these gatherings each year is like a time to fuel back up and get inspired and reconnect with people,” artist Elliott Kayser said.
Group show at the BBAC
When Kayser heard about the NCECA being in Detroit, he knew he wanted to plan an exhibition. The artists involved in the exhibition were assembled through a chain of invitations, meaning he initially asked Eric Ordway to join the exhibition. Ordway invited Megan Thomas, who invited Candice Methe, who invited Shawn Ireland.
“We all got to know each other. We’ve been meeting over Zoom once a month for the last year just to build community and talk about the show, and that was like a really nice way to organize a show, because all of the people participating felt some ownership over it,” Kayser said.
All the work was made specifically for this show. Kayser said the artists involved are all interested in the “really rich history of zoomorphic animal vessels in pottery.”
The group ceramic show, titled “Animalia,” featured a collection of pots in the form of animals.
“They make up a pretty significant portion of the things that are still in museums, and to me, that means that those are objects that were cherished, and they were keepsakes, to be able to survive that long,” Kayser said.
Cranbrook alumni show at the BBAC
Another exhibition at the Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center that highlights local ceramic artists, specifically during NCECA, is the Cranbrook alumni show, “Mechanical / Botanical.”
This show, organized by Ian McDonald, includes work from ceramic artists McDonald, Mark Vander Heide, Lisa Farris, María Cecilia Ferrer, Michael Takahata and Erika NJ Allen.
The work in the show combines nature and botanical elements with the mechanical. In Farris’ case, the theme of her work is more botanical while her process is partially mechanical. For example, she said she uses an extruder to create elements within this body of work.
“I am super excited about these forms, because I had been making things that were maybe more sculptural and I decided to explore the vessel as a starting point — so, kind of a nod to function — but then the piece just sort of becomes a sculptural object beyond being just a vase or a vessel,” Farris said.
Other than the complementary pieces of work within the show, the featured artists all have something in common: they are graduates of Cranbrook.
Farris graduated from Cranbrook in 2024. At the time, she was the second-oldest at Cranbrook. After her youngest child went off to college, she did her first artist residency and decided she wanted to go to Cranbrook.
“I think part of what we talk about and think about at Cranbrook has to do with where our work exists in the world of ceramics. Like, how we contribute to this incredibly rich field in a medium that is full of potential. For me, to finish grad school, and then two years later, be able to exhibit in the context of NCECA has been really incredible.”
Both exhibitions at the BBAC will be open through April 30. For more information, visit bbartcenter.org.