Image: Michael Robinson, “Light Green Aquarium”, n.d. Engraved blown glass. Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery Permanent Collection. Gift of Shirley & Michael Molot.

In the water that sustains and connects us, we find calm and respite, but also challenges and anxiety. The sublime nature of water is perhaps a contradiction, wavering between the known and unknown.

Presented in coordination with Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener and Area (CAFKA), this exhibition explores the 2023 biennial theme of Stay With Me through the medium of water. The selected works pulled from the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery’s Permanent Collection, invites us into diverse experiences with water that evoke tranquility, nostalgia, and uncertainty. Our shared existence and the experiences of water that connect us—our (chosen) families, our loved ones, and our communities—invite a moment of pause and a desire to resolve the vulnerabilities and discourses that divide us.