Utopic Impulses: Contemporary Ceramics Practice brings together ten essays and twenty artist projects to explore ceramics as a socially responsible practice. By framing particular ceramics practices as 'utopic impulses,' this anthology envisions new and stimulating conceptions of how studio ceramics contribute to the social and political fabric of their time. The ten essays by artists and theorists well-known in the field, including Paul Mathieu (2007 Saidye Bronfman Award winner) and Leopold Foulem, 'make a case' for the importance and value of studio ceramics in the public sphere. The artist projects in Utopic Impulses, reflect influences and contexts arising from both local and global concerns. Drawing from a full spectrum of examples, the projects include functional wares, design for industry, conceptual, community-based projects and large-scale installations by artists such as Greg Payce, Jeannie Mah, Sin-Ying Ho, Thrse Chabot, Jamelie Hassan, Anne Ramsden, Diane Sullivan and Les Manning. Each artist project consists of generous visual documentation supported by an artist statement. While the majority of contributors are Canadian, several are from Australia, Ireland and the UK. Bringing together innovative and forward-thinking examples of theory, history and studio practice, this volume will appeal to students, practitioners and educators in the fields of contemporary visual arts, ceramics and craft culture in general.

Ruth Chambers, who is a co-editor of Ronsdale's Utopic Impulses (2007) – along with Amy Gogarty and Mireille Perron – is a visual artist. Her projects have explored various cultural, medical, and metaphysical endeavors that have aimed to transcend and reconcile concepts of the material and immaterial, and the internal and external. Chambers has also given papers, participated in symposia, and chaired academic panels. She has taught at the University of Regina since 1994 and is currently Professor of Visual Arts/Ceramics.

Ruth Chambers' profile page

Amy Gogarty is an artist, writer, and educator who recently relocated from Alberta to Vancouver, British Columbia, where she works full-time as an artist and researcher. She has presented her research focusing on contemporary issues in art and craft practice nationally and internationally in the form of numerous catalogue essays, reviews and conference presentations.

Amy Gogarty's profile page

“Utopic Impulses: Contemporary Ceramics Practice comprises a substantive addition to the growing body of theoretical writing on what has been for too long a marginalized and ignored field. We need more of this.” — Fusion Magazine