Jaime Jenkins is a contemporary artist and ceramicist. Born in 1992, she lives in Tauranga.

Jaime hand-builds stoneware pieces that push the definitions of what clay can and should do. Teetering on the edges of functionality and fragility, her works often take on organic and intricate forms. Chains and bells are frequent subjects in Jaime’s practice, objects that defy the brittleness of fired clay and that create movement and sound.

Jaime is interested in pushing the structural capabilities of her medium. She constructs dense architectural pieces that can be used as stools, shelves and tables, or works that simply exist in isolation as large sculptures. Taking months to dry and with many succumbing in the kiln at the final stage, Jaime is constantly learning the extent to which she can push the material.

A core source of inspiration for Jaime is her experiences of nature and natural forms, which she translates into her stoneware. Jaime speaks of feeling 'filled up by nature' when she spends time in the landscape, such as out for a bush walk or diving into a water hole. The glazes and slips Jenkins uses are earthy and celestial, reflecting this deep attachment to the environment. Starry blues, forest-floor greens and deep grounding reds are some of the colours Jenkins returns to.

View Jaime's artist page on our website