Tanya Besedina
Porcelain maker
Thornhill, ON, Canada
Parian in a new light
- Tanya researches historical Parian materials, moulds and production techniques
- The translucency of porcelain plays an essential role in her practice
- She is the recipient of the 2025 Craft Ontario Helen Copeland Memorial Award in Ceramics
Tanya Besedina is a Toronto-based sculptor and researcher specialising in Parian and other translucent porcelains. Working with hand construction and slip casting, she creates sculptures and installations exploring light, memory and transformation. Tanya's research examines historical formulations, moulds and the physical traces of making preserved in porcelain objects. Seams, joins and variations in thickness bridge 19th-century production methods with contemporary practice. In 2026, she completed the Maker-Creator Fellowship at Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, studying its Parian collections and archival resources.
INTERVIEW
Porcelain's translucency is essential to my work as a porcelain artist because it allows light to pass through the form and supports my philosophy that body and mind are connected.
During my time spent around the NICU, I observed a presence, a force within each child, beyond the physical body. My work explores the relationship between body and spirit, birth and rebirth.
The closed eyes relate to introspection and the inner self. The faces refer to the inner child, which remains present throughout life. The flowers reflect nature, which is the source of beauty and energy.
I focus on mentorship rather than formal teaching. Many emerging artists need encouragement and direction. Sometimes, it is enough to simply tell someone that their work has value to give them conidence to keep creating.
Tanya Besedina
Porcelain maker
Thornhill, ON, Canada
ADDRESS
Address upon request, Thornhill, ON, Canada
AVAILABILITY
By appointment only
LANGUAGES
English, Russian, Ukrainian
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