Susan Day

Biography

Susan DayLondon artist Susan Day studied at H.B. Beal Secondary School followed by studies at Sheridan College School of Craft and Design, ARTsake in Toronto and NSCAD in Halifax.  Working with ceramic for over 40 years, Day has an extensive exhibition and installation history, using the material qualities of clay to expose the vulnerabilities of the body.  Her ceramic works range in scale from objects that can be held in the hand to monumentally-scaled collaborative public murals.

Through her public work she has experienced the power of public (or public facing) art to create meeting places that instil pride and ownership in neighbourhoods and places where communities meet.  Recent public projects include Mosaic House (2021), Legacy Park in Lethbridge, AB (2022), Care Point Safe Consumption Site (2023), London Children’s Museum (2024), 103A Ave Pedway in Edmonton, AB (2026) and a large upcoming project in Vancouver, BC to be completed in 2027.  These public projects feed her personal practice and reflect Day’s interest in storytelling, collaboration and community.

Her artworks are in the permanent public collections of the Bronfman Foundation, Museum London and McIntosh Gallery and countless private collections.

Selected Works

Exhibitions

Susan Day

September 19 - October 31 - 2026

Susan Day “Electric Storm”

Upcoming middle gallery exhibition for Susan Day featuring new drawings, tile paintings and sculptures.

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Transfer Station

November 9 - November 25 - 2023

Susan Day & Jason McLean “Transfer Station”

Two-person exhibition featuring new ceramic sculptures by Susan Day and drawings by Jason McLean.

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Curriculum Vitae

EDUCATION

NSCAD, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Artsake, Toronto, Ontario
Sheridan College School Of Crafts And Design, Lorne Park, Ontario

RESIDENCIES

1989 – The Banff Centre, Banff, Alberta

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS AND INSTALLATIONS

2025-2026
The Intuition Machine, Edmonton Arts Council Public Art Committee, Mosaic Installation, Edmonton, AB

2026
Electric Storm, Michael Gibson Gallery, London, ON

2025
Loonies ‘n’ Toonies: Three Canadians, Van Der Plas Gallery, New York, New York
Affordable Art Fair, Van Der Plas Gallery, New York, New York
Outsider Art Fair, Van Der Plas Gallery, New York, New York

2024
London Children’s Museum, London, Ontario: Large Scale Handmade Tile Installation
Canadian Clay And Glass Gallery, Waterloo, Ontario
Van Der Plas Gallery, NYC, NY
Craftontario, Toronto, Ontario

2023
Transfer Station, Susan Day And Jason McLean, Michael Gibson Gallery, London, Ontario
Royal Flush, Van Der Plas Gallery, NYC, NY
McIntosh Gallery, (Public Art Installation)Regional HIV/Aids Connection, London, Ontario (With Cornerstone Architects, Principle Alison J.L. Hannay)
Birds Exhibition, Westland Gallery, London, Ontario
Embassy Cultural House, 30th Anniversary Storefront And Virtual Exhibition

2022
Regional HIV/Aids Connection, London Ontario (With Cornerstone Architects, Principle Alison J.L. Hannay)
Legacy Park Public Art Installation, Lethbridge, Alberta
Rays Of Light, Group Exhibition, Van Der Plas Gallery, NYC, NY
Exterior Facade Installation , Van Der Plas Gallery, NYC, NY

2021
Community Engaged Public Art Project, Macintosh Gallery, Western University, London, Ontario
Mosaic House Residential Exterior, London, Ontario (With Skinner Architects)
Exhibition, Van Der Plas Gallery, NYC, NY
Stop Extinction! Restore The Earth (Virtual Exhibition), Embassy Cultural House, London, Ontario
Go; Rise And Strike Exhibition (Virtual Exhibition), Embassy Cultural House, London, Ontario

2020
London Artist Studio Tour, London, Ontario
London Children’s Museum, London, Ontario
Pandemic Exhibition (Online Exhibition), Embassy Cultural House, London, Ontario

2019
International Women’s Day Show (Group Exhibition), Westland Gallery, London, Ontario

2018
Waterworks, Norfolk Art Centre, Simple, Ontario (With Vicki Easton Mclung)
City Of London Mosaic Project, London, Ontario
Old East Village Neighbourhood Mosaic, London, Ontario
Nanjing Youth Cultural Centre, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China

2017
Celebrate Canada 150 Mosaic, London Clay Art Centre, London, Ontario
Strand Fine Art Services, London, Ontario (Group Exhibition)
Suquian Cultural Centre, Soyu, Jiangsu, China

2016
Museum London, London, Ontario (Group Exhibition)

2010
John Labatt Art Centre, Western University, London, Ontario

2006
La Chambre Blanche, Quebec City, Quebec

2003
University Du Quebec A Chicoutimi, Chicoutimi, Quebec

1998
A Space, Toronto, Ontario
McIntosh Gallery, University Of Western Ontario, London, Ontario (With Micah Lexier)
John Labatt Art Centre, Western University, London, Ontario
Theilsen Gallery, London, Ontario

1996
Open Studio, Victoria, British Columbia (With Ron Benner, Jamelie Hassan, Kim Moodie, And Wyn Gelynse)

SELECTED COLLECTIONS

Bronfman Foundation
McIntosh Gallery
Museum London

Private Collections

AWARDS

1990, 1991, 1995
Canada Council

1998, 2020
Ontario Arts Council

SELECTED REVIEWS AND PRESS

Gallery & Studio Magazine, Review, Christopher Heffernan: Susan Day Tells Her Story in Ceramics  (2025)

Whitehot  Magazine, Review, Stephan Wozniak: Toonies ‘n’ Loonies: Vivid Visions from the Great North at Van Der Plas Gallery (2025)

Akimbo Blog Post: Susan Day: In Our Midst   (2024)

ROGERSTV, The Paint Box with Jane Roy, Video: Susan Day (PT 1), Susan Day (PT 2) (2024)

Wordsfest, London, Ontario: Transfer Station: Jason McLean & Susan Day in Conversation (2023)

Van Der Plast Gallery, New York City, New York: Les Winterfest (2023)

Beatriz Baleeiro, London Free Press, London, Ontario: Two From the Road (2023)

Helen Simpson, Diary Of A Tile Addict , Blog Post – You’ve Not Seen Tiles Like This (2023)

Leon, Calvi – 12000 Tiles,One Goal – Mosaic Project Honours Lives Lost To Overdoses (2023)

Lupton, Andrew – Mural To Convey Theme Of Caring At Supervised Drug Treatment Site (2023)

A Driving Force – Video – Mcintosh Gallery , Western University, London, Ontario (2020)

Pifco, Cara – Rethinking Identity Or The End Of The Individual, Instagram Live Conversation (2020)

Smith, Mackenzie – Remembering The Embassy Cultural House, Embassyculturalhouse.Ca (2020)

Pratt, Darlene. Ceramics Monthly (2 Articles) (2019)

CBC Radio – Rebecca Vanbergen (2019)

CBC Radio – Jane Antoniack (2019)

Benedict, Ben, Rethinking Our Secret Biography ; Works By Micah Lexier And Susan Day (1998)

Williamson, Janice, And Elliott, Bridget; Dangerous Goods: Feminist Visual Art Practices (1992)

Miller, James, Fluid Exchanges : Artists And Critics In The Aids Crisis (1990)

News

Angie Quick & Susan Day Talk

Now online - watch Angie Quick & Susan Day's May 3 talk

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Angie Quick & Susan Day: In Conversation

Angie Quick in conversation with Susan Day on Saturday, May 3 @ 2pm, in person and on Zoom.

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Videos

Angie Quick & Susan Day Talk

On the last day of Angie Quick's "Has Love Made You The Enemy" exhibition, we hosted a conversation with artists Angie Quick and Susan Day.   Though they work in different mediums (painting and clay, respectively), both artists use figuration and their personal history as part of their work.  Through their conversation we learned how each artist approaches their own artistic practice and how this is Quick’s most personal body of paintings yet.

Transfer Station: Jason McLean & Susan Day Talk

Michael Gibson Gallery and Words were very pleased to present a visit with London artists Jason McLean and Susan Day in conjunction with their November 2023 exhibition "Transfer Station".