Jesse Birch 

Jesse birch

Jesse Birch is Curator of Nanaimo Art Gallery (2014-present). He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts (Photography) from Emily Carr University (2001), and a Masters of Arts degree in Art History (Critical and Curatorial Studies) from the University of British Columbia (2008). In 2007, he was a curatorial fellow at de Appel Arts Centre in Amsterdam. Birch was Co-Director/Curator of Access Gallery in Vancouver from 2008 to 2010 and Exhibitions Curator at Western Front from 2012-2014. He has also served on the Board of the Or Gallery (Vancouver) and was active with the Pacific Association of Artist Run Centres. Birch has published in numerous exhibition catalogues and art magazines including C Magazine, Yishu, and fillip, and he received the Art Writing Award from Ontario Association of Art Galleries for his essay on artist Kika Thorne for the Art Gallery of Windsor. From 2009-2013 Birch taught at Emily Carr University in the Critical and Cultural Studies faculty. As an artist he has exhibited across Canada, in Australia, South Korea, and Japan. Jesse is a potter and is a member of the Tozan Cultural Society, which stewards a four chamber wood fired noborigama kiln, just south of Nanaimo BC.

Offsite keynote on Friday, March 20, 7pm at Emily Carr University, Reliance Theatre, 520 1st Avenue East, Vancouver

Where Do Pots Belong? 

On Exhibiting Useful Ceramics

Image: Pottery by Lari Robson with Penumbra by Vanessa Brown in the background. As featured in the 2017 Nanaimo Art Gallery exhibition Dream Islands, curated by Jesse Birch and Emma Metcalfe-Hurst. Photo by Sean Fenzl courtesy of Nanaimo Art Gallery. 

Handmade pots can lead interesting lives. They arrive at our homes imbued with the care of their production, which is then amplified by their use. As supports for food, drink, and flowers, they comfort us and participate in some of our most significant moments. But as pots tend to come and go from our hands, and have lifespans that far exceed ours, we are only ever stewards of these objects. From high-fire kilns to high-end auctions, from kitchen cupboards to thrift store shelves, their roles and values can shift wildly over time.

When pots make their way into art gallery and museum collections, another change occurs. Institutional policies and protocols mean that they rarely see the light of day, and when they do they are usually out of reach, or under glass. Informed by his perspective as a pottery enthusiast and potter, but focusing on his role as a curator of contemporary art and steward of Nanaimo Art Gallery’s collection of BC ceramics, Jesse Birch will speak to the lives of useful pots as their roles shift, and discuss strategies to keep them vital after they have been appraised, catalogued, and archived. Birch will focus on the stories the pots bring with them and the power of craft to speak on its own terms no matter the context.

This keynote is free and open to the public. Seating is available on a first come basis. Jesse Birch’s keynote will be preceded by in memoriam and honouree announcements. Thank you to North West Ceramics Foundation and Emily Carr University of Art + Design for directly supporting this event.