Erin Berry Wins the 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics

Erin Berry, Hyperprocess (interior detail), 2025. Earthenware clay, steel bolts, plasticine, geological specimens, fossils, PLA, aluminum, bronze, porcelain, found/donated objects. 365 x 325 x 231 cm architectural spiral. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Erin Berry Wins $10,000 Top Prize in 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics

The Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery is delighted to announce that Erin Berry of Victoria, BC is the winner of the 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics. Berry will receive a $10,000 prize, which will support the development of her career at this critical time.

The only national award for emerging ceramic artists in Canada, the Winifred Shantz Award is a prestigious honour. Presented through an ongoing partnership with the Keith and Winifred Shantz Fund for the Arts held at Waterloo Region Community Foundation, winners and finalists of the award are recognized as the best and brightest of the future of Canadian ceramic art.

We are pleased to celebrate this year’s Shantz Award runner-up, Etty Anderson (Montréal, QC), who will receive a $5,000 prize. We also celebrate the achievement of the finalists for this year’s award: Mariana Bolaños Inclan (Toronto, ON), Undine Foulds (Halifax, NS), and Parvin Peivandi (Vancouver, BC). Each finalist will receive a prize of $1,000 to further their practice.

This summer, the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery will feature the winner and finalists in our annual Emergence exhibition alongside the winner and finalists of the RBC Award for Glass. The exhibition will provide a rare opportunity for these emerging makers to share their work with an extensive audience while helping to build their careers at a pivotal moment. An opening reception presenting the 2026 awards will be held on Thursday, May 28, 2026, 6 – 8pm. All are welcome.

Etty Anderson, Fancy Pronk: The Queer Transcendance of Rotten Fruit, 2025. Coloured porcelain, cone 10 reduction salt fired. Life sized. Photo by Nathan Lang.

The 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics was juried by Melanie Egan, Julie Hall, and Eekta Trienekens. On selecting Erin Berry as the 2026 winner, the jurors state:

“Erin’s commitment to an expansive, immersive practice and her exploration of materials, methods, scale, and exhibition installation all added up to an impressive application. Her strong reflections on the body, geological time, and a range of materials makes for thought-provoking storytelling.

“The jury was unanimously impressed with Erin’s ambitious practice and plans to deliver on her proposed work. Congratulations, Erin, we’re looking forward to seeing the work you make as the winner of the 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics.”

For more information on the Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics, visit our website.

About the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery

The Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery is an award-winning, national institution based in Waterloo Region celebrating the art and craft of clay, glass, and enamel. As a dynamic cultural organization, we continue to amplify diverse stories—opening dialogue and inspiring social change. Through exhibitions that address issues relevant to our times, an impressive selection of works in our Gallery Shop, and public programs that engage, educate, and excite—we are accessible to all. For more information, visit: www.theclayandglass.ca

Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery
25 Caroline Street North
Waterloo, Ontario N2L 2Y5
519-746-1882
www.theclayandglass.ca

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