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Erin Berry receives 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for ceramics
Hyperprocess (interior detail) by Erin Berry, 2025.
Erin Berry, BFA 19, has been named the recipient of the 2026 Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics by the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery.
The award is the only national prize in Canada specifically for emerging ceramic artists and is supported through a partnership with the Keith and Winifred Shantz Fund for the Arts held at the Waterloo Region Community Foundation. It provides a $10,000 prize to support independent research or other professional development activities and includes acquisition of one of the winner’s works for the Gallery’s permanent collection. Runner-up and finalist artists also receive smaller awards.
Berry’s work includes the installation Hyperprocess (2025). The award jury described her practice as “ambitious, expansive, and thought‑provoking,” noting its engagement with materials, scale, and temporal themes.
Concordia University has had several connections to the Shantz Award. Past recipients include ceramic artist and faculty member Lindsay Montgomery and alumna Amélie Proulx, BFA 06. Concordia-affiliated artists Rebecca Ramsey was also a finalist in 2022.
Learn more about the Winifred Shantz Award and past recipients on the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery website.
