Meet Irja Bodén

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Irja Bodén a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Irja, we are so happy that our community is going to have a chance to learn more about you, your story and hopefully even take in some of the lessons you’ve learned along the way. Let’s start with self-care – what do you do for self-care and has it had any impact on your effectiveness?

Working with clay is physically demanding; lifting heavy clay boxes, preparing and wedging clay, mixing glazes, and constantly moving pieces around the studio require strength. Having been a ceramicist for a quarter-century, as I get older, I have become more aware of my physical well-being. To prevent exhaustion, pulled muscles, and a sore lower back, I visit my local yoga studio 4 to 5 times a week. Incorporating yoga into my morning routine has not only strengthening me in ways that my ceramic work doesn’t, but boosting my energy. I also take my two dogs for a long walk most mornings and by 10 I’m in my ceramic studio.

Beyond the physical demands, studio work can be isolating, so another form of my self-care is building a strong network of fellow artists. We meet regularly for coffee or exchange studio visits. Meeting others with a common interest IRL is especially rewarding, whether they are fellow artists or other dog people, and my dogs enjoy these social interactions just as much as I do.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I’ve been a ceramic artist for more than 25 years; I began, as most do, by creating functional ware, but now I solely create sculptures in ceramics. My sculptures combine stacked ceramic forms embossed with texture and layered with multiple applications of thick glazes. Generally, I begin each piece on the wheel, then transforming the raw clay into an abstract, though narrative-based, form. The interplay of shape, color, and texture commonly references the northern arboreal landscape. The Arctic’s vanishing ice sheets, melting glaciers, and thawing permafrost particularly inform my work, translating the urgency of environmental crisis into tactile form.

I will host an open studio event on the Sunday of the Thanksgiving weekend, that is, on the first Sunday of Advent; growing up in Sweden, the holiday celebrations commence on the first day of Advent. The organizing this event will be fun, but it’s also an inducement to get my studio cleaned up, work on presentation and to send out invitaions to my mailing list. With the close of the year, I’m working a little bit extra on the administrative side, getting the studio presentable and my website updated and organized. Also, it’s time to set goals for 2026, and one of my objectives is to complete my formulation of a museum installation for a summer’s exhibition.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Perserverance, curiousity, and a confidence that one can achieve knowledge and ability, and all of those virtues are best in combination. Merely to throw well on the wheel and to center a lump of clay a lot of perseverance, and that’s just one skill in ceramics. I am most curious when I glaze, and I continue to explore the surface until I feel the piece completed; it becomes a relationship you build with the piece, a conversation. One of the most rewarding aspects of curiousity is the surprise each time I open a glaze kiln. Without that surprise, I would have likely abandoned this medium long ago. And it’s your hands that a repositories of knowledge; working with my hands has been essential to my creative process, and it’s my hands where that knowledge has built up over the years.

My advice to beginners is to keep an open mind, and to view feelings of discouragement as the larger society telling you that you’re less than you are.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

My partner of many years is my greatest supporter. Whenever I feel stuck or ready to give up, my partner encourages me to channel those feelings into my studio work, helping me push through challenging times. Disappointments are a part of being an artist, since they are a part of life; not getting selected for a show, a residency or a grant does happen, but having a supportive partner makes these setbacks much easier to handle.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://irjaboden.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atelier.boden.i/

Image Credits

Cloe Davis
Adam T. Deen