Biography
Maja moved to Canada in 1997 from Serbia and graduated from NBCCD with a diploma in Studio Ceramics in 2001. She has been working with clay professionally as a studio artist for the past 20 years and has worked as a part-time instructor at NBCCD. She has attended and taught numerous workshops in Canada, the United States, and Europe, and participated in ceramic residencies in Canada, Hungary, Serbia, and France. Maja has received several grants and awards from the New Brunswick Arts Board, the Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Canadian Clay and Glass Association. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is part of public and private collections in North America, Europe, and Asia. She lives in the Village of Gagetown in New Brunswick, acknowledging that the land on which she lives and works is the traditional unceded territory of the Wəlastəkwiyik Peoples.
Project
An important part of my work is research in glaze chemistry. The complexity of materials that come from the earth, like feldspars, minerals, and metal oxides, when mixed in different proportions and exposed to the transformative power of fire, leads to unpredictable results ranging from beauty to disaster. Glazed surfaces are achieved by my glaze recipes, high temperatures, multiple firings, and volatile and unpredictable ceramic materials that always include an element of chance. The glazes' physical properties, appearance in the raw state that doesn’t resemble the fired piece, are specific to the ceramics process. I want to show how my clay tiles change through the process of making, from the soft clay slabs to the application of slips and engobes (coloured liquid clays) to the finished object. I will work on several tiles using different decorative techniques like stencils, resists, carving, and hand building. I want to discuss and explain my process to visitors and encourage them to participate in decorating.
Studio hours
Monday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Tuesday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Wednesday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Thursday 2:00 pm - 7:00 pm