What does a coffee cup reveal about air pollution, raw materials, and social inequality? Ceramic is one of the most durable materials available: as long as it doesn’t break, it can last thousands of years. At the same time, the production is anything but sustainable. The firing process releases a large amount of CO₂, and some raw materials and glazes are harmful to humans and environment, or are running out.

The Princessehof National Museum of Ceramics and Lab AIR explore this paradox in Sustainable Ceramics #2: Investigating a Footprint.

Featuring work by, among others: Alternative Ceramics Supply (Australia); Hannah Rose Whittle and Benedetta Pompili of the Rijksakademie Tech Fellowship Programme, Amsterdam; Studio Lotte Douwes, Rotterdam; and Fabrikaat, Nijmegen. Next to our Smogware project Lab AIR’s research on hidden stories of mass production will be shown.

We are happy to collaborate again with our heros SIVK for graphic design and Roel van Tour for a short and beautiful film.

The exhibition opens on November 22 and runs until October 25, 2026. For the accompanying program, the museum is collaborating with Crafts Council Nederland, offering workshops and events that delve deeper into the subject.

More news to follow later, on our insta account and website of Princessehof Museum.

This project is financially supported by Van Achterberg-Domhof.