statement
Nan Smith works in fired ceramic, connecting the human figure to a material that embodies both fragility and timelessness. Life models are selected to convey meaning, often using the young adult female form to symbolize transition, potential, and intuition.
Earlier work, including the Series in White, explored spiritual understanding, girlhood nostalgia, and the illusions of idealized youth through porcelain figurines and photographic decal imagery.
Her current practice integrates environmental and health concerns, combining scientific research with sculpture to examine human impact on land and waterways. These themes are evident in works such as Mercury and Summers’ Over, as well as in the Thirsty Nest series completed in 2025.
Smith’s process is varied and rigorous. Life-modeling, life-casting, and mold-making allow figures to convey gesture and expression. Surfaces are developed through underglazes, high- and low-fire glazes, china paint decals, and cold-surface methods, often incorporating photographic imagery digitally composed and printed on ceramic, paper, or fabric.
biography
American sculptor Nan Smith was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She earned a BFA in ceramics, summa cum laude, from the Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University, where she studied under porcelain master Rudolph Staffel, and later completed an MFA at The Ohio State University.
Smith is Professor Emerita at the University of Florida, where she taught ceramics in the nationally recognized program from 1979 to 2019. Her work has been exhibited at SOFA Chicago, the American Museum of Ceramic Art, the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, the Harn Museum of Art, and numerous venues throughout the United States.
Her honors include an NEA-funded Southern Arts Federation Fellowship in Sculpture, four State of Florida Individual Artist Fellowship Awards, and a University of Florida Research Foundation Professorship. Smith’s work has been featured in The Figure in Clay, World Famous Ceramic Artists’ Studios, and Florida Sculptors and Their Work, 1880–2020, as well as in Sculpture, Ceramics Monthly, Ceramics: Art and Perception, New Ceramics (Germany), Ceramics: Ireland, World Sculpture News, and China Ceramic Artist. (See Publications tab for articles.)
Her work is held in public and corporate collections including the World Ceramics Exposition Korea International Collection (Icheon, Korea), the Givat Haviva Art Center (Israel), American Express Corporation, the Lamar Dodd Art Center, Burlington County Community College, the Santa Fe College Foundation, and Rosenfeld Collections. In 2012, Smith served as a juror for Lark and Sterling Publishing’s 500 Figures in Clay. An active educator, she has presented workshops and lectures nationally and internationally on figurative sculpture, mold-making, and photo-imaging techniques, with highlights including the Ceramics Ireland International Festival (2018), Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts (2018), Penland School of Crafts (2017), and Bezalel Academy of Art and Design (2017).
She lives and works in Gainesville, Florida, where she maintains her private studio.
