Johannes Nagel

Ceramicist Johannes Nagel was born in Jena, Germany in 1979. In 2001, he served as an apprentice to noted potter Kinya Ishikawa in Val-David, PQ, Canada. Between 2002 and 2008, Nagel studied fine arts and ceramics at the University of Art & Design Burg Giebichenstein in Halle, Germany, ultimately graduating with a postgraduate level diploma.

From 2005 to 2006, he was an artist-in-residence at the Shigaraki Ceramics Cultural Park Shigaraki, Japan. The following year, Nagel participated in a student exchange program at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio and went on to open his atelier in Halle. In addition to his own creative work, since 2012, Nagel has served as an assistant professor at the University of Art & Design Burg Giebichenstein in Halle.

Nagel is known for one-of-a-kind pieces that blur the lines between functional pottery and objets d’art. His works question the function, form, and meaning behind traditional vessels. His ceramics have been exhibited widely in a number of group and solo shows, including, but not limited to: Art Meets Science at the Physikalisch Technische Bundesanstalt (Berlin, 2005); Erwartung 19 at Künstlerhaus 188 (Halle, 2008); The Vessel—The Object at Kunstforum Solothurn (2009, Switzerland); Causing Chaos at Fife Contemporary Art & Craft, St Andrews Museum (2010, Scotland); Studio Ware at Gallery Fumi (2011, London); Dauerbrenner II: Freisspiel at geh8 (2011, Dresden); In Form gegossen at Galerie Handwerk (2012, Munich); Craft & Scenography at Depot Basel (2012, Switzerland); and German Contemporary Arts & Crafts at the Cheongju International Craft Biennale (2013, Korea).