BIO

Juana Berinstein (pronouns she/her or they/them) was born in Argentina, from Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry, immigrated to Canada in the early 1980s and now lives in Toronto. Berinstein has an undergraduate degree in Women and Gender Studies and a Master’s degree in Communication and Culture. She completed Fusion’s ceramic mentorship program with Angelo di Petta in 2020. Berinstein’s ceramic work has been exhibited in juried shows in Canada and the US.

ARTIST STATEMENT

My ceramic work deals with both identity, memory and social justice/change. I use text and images, in a variety of techniques, including silkscreen, printing, stamping and sgraffito on my clay surfaces. Exploring themes that have impacted my life, my ceramic work reflects issues of migration, community and queerness and their intersections. My Social Justice Seder plate project for example, exhibited at the Gardiner Museum as part of the Creative Directions show (2021) challenged tradition by reimaging a Seder plate that welcomed and centered, queerness, Palestine and Indigenous reconciliation. My ceramic practice is one way in which I express my activism and hope for a more just world.

July 2022