The XV International Biennial of Ceramic Art, Aveiro
On Saturday, 30 October 2021, the 15th International Biennial of Ceramic Art was opened in Aveiro, Portugal. This year’s competition attracted 477 entries from 298 artists worldwide (58 nationalities). The main exhibition is on show at the Aveiro City Museum, housed in the beautiful 15th century Franciscan abbey. The jury, headed by Benedetta Diamanti, director of the European Route of Ceramics, selected 128 works from 113 artists representing 28 countries, emphasizing the major international significance of this event in the ceramic art calendar. At the opening ceremony attended by more than 100 artists and guests, the Mayor of Aveiro, José Ribau Esteves, presented the first prize (12,000) to Ellen van der Woude (Netherlands) for her exquisite clay and porcelain sculpture entitled Big Smile 1. Second prize (8,000) went to Marie-Josée Comello (Netherlands) for her incredible floor installation, ETA 24.06, composed of hundreds of slip-cast porcelain objects and a wooden aeroplane wing. Third prize (5,000) was awarded to Andri Ioannou (Italy) for her beautiful porcelain lamellar sculpture, Nereide. Ten artists received an honourable mention: Anima Roos (Belgium), Cheng Chung Yu (Taiwan), Chin-Wang Chen (China), Filipe Faleiro (Portugal), Lara de Sio (Italy), Olga Simonova (Germany), Rita Gonçalves (Portugal), Sunbin Lim (South Korea) and Yukiko Kitahara (Japan).