Teresa Bergen’s ceramic work explores narrative and relationships through movement, myth and folklore. Animated by the turn of a crank, human and animal figures take flight, perform banjo solos or spin in helpless circles surrounded by chaotic toddlers. Pattern, colour and story adorn interior and exterior surfaces of her sculpture and functional ceramics.
Born in Vancouver, Bergen started her art education at Langara College then moved on to complete a BFA at NSCAD University on the other side of the country. Post graduation she cycled and hiked to Dawson City Yukon for an artist residency through the Klondike Institute for Art and Culture. On a rock pile outside town she built a kiln and converted a broken down school bus to pottery workshop.
Upon returning to Nova Scotia she continuedher practice at Turnstile Pottery Cooperative. In 2005 she established her own studio and, more recently, a small gallery near Chester NS where she now lives with her husband, musician Old Man Luedecke, their three children and a fluctuating flock of chickens.
Bergen’s work was selected for the Nova Scotia Art Bank purchase award 2020, is included in the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia’s permanent collection as well as private collections around the world. She is a recipient of the Arts Nova Scotia Creation Grant. Major commissions include Tea Train for the Kamm Teapot collection, a work for Cinderella’s Castle at a Tokyo theme park and the Founder’s Tree. Her work has been exhibited across Canada, in Los Angeles, Pittsburg and at SOFA Chicago.