CATHARSIS + CATHEXIS

why this maker moniker

For me, ceramics is a cathartic experience—a joyful, meditative, somatic practice that keeps me grounded in creativity and making. It is one of the few times my busy brain is still.My hope is that every piece brings you as much joy as it did me in creating it—that you cathect* with it and become emotionally invested in this handmade object.In this exchange—between my cathartic release through making and the receiver’s cathexis with the finished work—we complete a circle of connection. It is an alchemy that transforms clay into meaning._{*To cathect: to invest with mental or emotional energy (like you would with a family heirloom).}

ARTIST STATEMENT - CALABASH SERIES

I have developed a body of work which uses calabash (gourds) as forms to create sculptural vessels.Each calabash brings its own irregular geometry— ridges, dimples, and scars that dictate the clay's final form, rejecting symmetry for biomorphic unpredictability. This cross-material collaboration pushes ceramic practice beyond conventional methods, embracing imperfection and the unexpected partnership.The process mirrors human experience: we are all molded by encounters that leave lasting impressions. Like these vessels, we carry the memory of what has touched us.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Natasha was introduced to ceramics as an art form in the mid-1980’s - while living in Lahore with her family - through a formative encounter with esteemed Pakistani potter Sheherezade Alam. This artistic connection deepened a decade later when Natasha briefly studied under Alam in 1997 after discovering she had relocated to Toronto.Following a twenty-year pause, Natasha rekindled her interest in ceramics in 2019 at Inspirations Studio—a social enterprise supporting women and non-binary individuals navigating poverty, marginalization, and mental health challenges. When the pandemic hit in 2020, a meaningful gift of a pottery wheel from friends for her 50th birthday enabled her to establish a home studio practice.Her evolving practice has gained recognition in juried exhibitions including Workman Art's Being Scene 2022, Northern Contemporary's 2023 Holiday Show and Sale and 2024 It's Not Easy Being Green, Wychwood Barns Art Market Nuit Blanche 2024, and Arts Etobicoke's Emerging Artists Over 30 2025. She was selected to participate in Museum of Dufferin’s inaugural Earth and Fire Festival, as well as Unity Through the Arts: 3rd Annual Juried Exhibition. Her first solo show is on exhibit at the Art Gallery of Burlington as part of their Community Generator exhibition program until May 24, 2026. Natasha was featured in issue 63 of UPPERCASE Magazine's Fresh Talent section (Oct - Dec 2024). She maintains active memberships with the Burlington Potters Guild, Toronto Potters, Fusion Clay and Glass, and Craft Ontario.A neurodivergent, queer, French-Canadian ceramicist, Natasha is actively reconnecting with her language and heritage while examining her position as a settler on colonized lands. Based in Tkaronto (Toronto), she balances her artistic practice with her job at Daily Bread Food Bank.

GROUP EXHIBITIONS / JURIED SHOWS

2026 - National accessArts Centre: Explosions of Curiosity
2026 - Fusion Clay & Glass: Connect Online
2025 - Unity Through the Arts: 3rd Annual Juried Exhibition
2025 - Museum of Dufferin: Earth & Fire: Clay and Glass Festival
2025 - Art Gallery of Burlington: All Guilds Show
2025 - Arts Etobicoke: Emerging Artists Over 30
2024 - Barns Art Market/Wychwood Barns: Nuit Blanche Night Market
2024 - Northern Contemporary: It's Not Easy Being Green
2023 - Northern Contemporary: Holiday Show and Sale
2022 - Workman Arts: Being Scene

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2026 - Vessels of Memory. Art Gallery of Burlington: Community Generator exhibition program (Feb 7 – May 24)

PUBLICATIONS

UPPERCASE Magazine. Issue 63. Oct-Nov-Dec 2024. ‘Fresh Talent’ feature

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