Rage 2.0, 2026, clay and glazes, 21” across

Awurabena Opare-Addo is a ceramic artist, educator, entrepreneur, and MFA candidate in Studio Art with a concentration in Ceramics at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Originally from Ghana, she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Industrial Arts (Ceramics) from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), where she served as President of the Ceramics Student Association and later worked as a Teaching Assistant in the Ceramics Department.

Opare-Addo has always enjoyed working with her hands and finding creative ways to turn ideas into something tangible. Her passion for ceramics led her to pursue opportunities beyond the classroom and eventually into entrepreneurship.

Her experiences as an artist, educator, and entrepreneur continue to shape her approach to learning and making. She enjoys sharing what she learns with others and is particularly interested in creating opportunities for young people to explore their creativity.

As she continues her graduate studies, Opare-Addo is expanding her artistic practice while developing as an educator and researcher.

Artist Statement

I became interested in ceramics because clay made me curious. It is a material that seems to listen to almost every command, but it does not give in immediately. You must spend time with it, understand how it behaves, and learn how to work with it. For me, making ceramics is like building a relationship: the more I understand the material, the more possibilities I discover.

My work is rooted in my experiences as a Ghanaian and in the everyday things that shape how I see the world. I explore ideas of identity, belonging, memory, communication, culture, and the social experiences that connect people. I am interested in the small and large things that influence how we understand ourselves, our communities, and the people around us.

Clay is usually where I begin, but I enjoy allowing other materials into the conversation. I work with textiles, beads, jute, stones, found objects, paints, and other materials that interest me. I also draw from Adinkra symbols and Ghanaian cultural references, using them as a starting point for thinking about contemporary experiences rather than simply repeating traditional forms.

I enjoy the uncertainty that comes with making. Sometimes I start with a clear idea, and sometimes the material takes me somewhere I did not expect. A surface may change, a form may break, or a combination of materials may create something completely different from what I imagined. Instead of seeing these moments as mistakes, I see them as part of the conversation between me and the work.

As I continue my MFA, I am interested in pushing this conversation further. I want to experiment with materials, color, surfaces, and processes while continuing to explore the experiences and questions that matter to me. I am still learning what my materials can do, and I am excited by the fact that I may never completely figure them out.