Stephanie H. Shih

Stephanie H. Shih (Chinese: 石函玉) is a Taiwanese American ceramic artist, who makes sculptures that resemble popular traditional and mass-produced pantry items that are found in many Asian-American homes.

Biography

Shih was born and raised in New Jersey to parents who had emigrated from Taiwan.[1] Prior to beginning her art career, Shih had been working as a copywriter. She started to throw and sculpt in clay as a therapeutic way to manage chronic pain.[2] Since 2009, she has been living and working in Brooklyn.[3]

Artwork

Shih’s ceramic sculptures represent a reflection of Asian Diaspora culture, through food items that have been created or adapted by Asian communities in Western countries.[4]

Her work in clay began with pottery inspired by Chinese Qing and Song dynasties. Thereafter, she started to create hand-folded porcelain dumplings.[5] Shih has since created over one-thousand ceramic dumplings. These dumplings are vessels that hold significant emotional memories. Shih began making real pork-filled dumplings at an early age with her family and recognized their culinary significance.[6]

In 2018, Shih created a group of life-sized food items rendered in clay, which she titled “Oriental Grocery.” Some of the sculptures in the series include a sriracha bottle, Chinkiang black vinegar, Lao Gan Ma chili sauce, a box of Pocky, Chapagetti noodles, and a 50lb bag of Botan rice. Other food items Shih has sculpted include Kings Hawaiian buns and SPAM, which are products that were introduced to Asian Diasporic communities as a result of the United States’ global militarization and colonial exploitation.[7][8]

Art critic John Yau states that “Shih’s work is both aesthetic and political, a commentary on assimilation as a process in which one’s national origin is not forgotten or erased. This resistance troubles a significant number of Americans. They might go to a Chinese restaurant and open their fortune cookie at the end of the meal, but they don’t like the colorful diversity that the future holds for them.” [9]

Solo exhibitions

  • Stephanie H. Shih: Domestic Bliss, Alexander Berggruen, New York, NY, 2025 [10]
  • Greetings from Gold Mountain, Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, CA, 2023[11]
  • My Sweetie Has No Pockmarks, Syracuse University Art Museum, Syracuse, NY, 2022
  • Open Sundays, Harkawik, New York, NY, 2022
  • New World Mall, Stanley’s, Los Angeles, 2021 [8]
  • Same Same, Perrotin Editions, New York, NY, 2020
  • 叚/家: Nostalgia for a Nonexistent Homeland, Wieden+Kennedy Gallery, Portland, OR, 2019
  • A Strong Tide and Other Homes, Duke Riley Studio, Brooklyn, NY, 2017

References

  1. ^ Shareff, Jory (2020-06-26). "Ceramic Artist Stephanie H. Shih on the Meaning of Memory and Clay". Cultured Magazine. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  2. ^ Bhabha, Leah (2021-04-01). "For Ceramist Stephanie Shih, There's No Such Thing as Art Without Activism". Bon Appétit. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  3. ^ Budds, Diana (2020-10-21). "Artist Stephanie H. Shih Happily Gave Up On Minimalism". Curbed. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  4. ^ Recinos, Eva (2021-08-25). "Step Into a Pantry of Ceramic Groceries". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  5. ^ Specter, Emma (2019-05-10). "Stephanie H. Shih's Food Ceramics Nourish Asian-American Memory". Garage. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  6. ^ Gharib, Malaka (2019-01-04). "Through Food Art, Asian-Americans Stop 'Pushing Heritage To The Back Burner'". NPR. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  7. ^ Li, Ang (May 28, 2019). "Asian American Chefs Are Embracing Spam. But How Did the Canned Meat Make Its Way Into Their Cultures?". Time. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  8. ^ a b Wally, Maxine (August 4, 2021). "Hennessy, Heinz & Spam: Stephanie Shih Honors Asian Kitchen Staples". W Magazine. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  9. ^ Yau, John (2020-06-27). "The White Melting Pot". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 2021-10-16.
  10. ^ Archer, Sarah (2025-01-23). "New Takes on a Classic Taiwanese Treat". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-01-29.
  11. ^ Ch'ien, Letha (2023-03-09). "Stephanie H. Shih's ceramics imbue simple objects with meaning, beauty". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2023-05-23.
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