Kendall
Traylor
Work
→ Aggregate Bodies
→ Process
→ Shard Archive
→ Body Studies
→ Plantiful Undulation
→ Organic Fillers
About
→ bio
→ C/V
→ Revitalizing Clay
Shop
→ ReKlaymed:
100% Recycled Pottery
Contact
Kendall
Work
→ Aggregate Bodies
→ Process
→ Shard Archive
→ Body Studies
→ Plantiful Undulation
→ Organic Fillers
About
→ bio
→ C/V
→ Revitalizing Clay
Shop
→ ReKlaymed:
100% Recycled Pottery
Contact
I work with clay as both a medium and an archive, creating terrazzo-speckled sculptures from recycled ceramic waste, paper, drywall, and other discarded materials collected from the community. Each embedded fragment holds the memory of its past life, like scars pressed into skin, turning fragile gestures and broken matter into enduring form. My practice is rooted in the labor of reclamation: slow, physical processes of breaking down, drying, pulverizing, and reforming thousands of pounds of waste into new clay bodies where traces remain visible as structural and conceptual markers.
The resulting works are not pristine; they carry seams, folds, and raw textures as evidence of transformation and care. Built through intuitive movements and bodily engagement, the forms echo the body itself: heavy, voluminous, unapologetic in scale. Emerging from walls, floors, and corners, they can appear parasitic or tender, refusing to shrink and insisting on presence.
By reclaiming materials and claiming space, I affirm the value of what has been overlooked or discarded. My work connects sustainability to memory, care, and embodiment, turning absence into presence, waste into value, and scars into monuments.
BiographyKendall Traylor was born and raised in Long Beach, California. She began working with clay at the age of sixteen. In 2022, Kendall received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics and a Biomedical Illustration Certification from California State University, Long Beach. Following an international artist residency and lecture at The Pottery Workshop (2024) in Jingdezhen, China, she has continued to develop a material research practice centered on ceramic reclamation, bodily form, and material memory. In 2026, she received her Master of Fine Arts degree from Arizona State University (ASU), where she received the Outstanding Graduate Award. She is currently a ceramics instructor and a Vocational Rehabilitation Job coach at SEEDs For Autism in Phoenix, AZ. Research grants Kendall has received include the Martin Wong Foundation (2023), Arizona Artists’ Guild (2023), and the ASU Changemaker Action Grant (2025). Kendall has exhibited work at the Harry Wood Gallery, the New School for Academics and Art (2024), the ASU Humanities Institute in Tempe, AZ, and the Shemer Art Center and Step Gallery in Phoenix, AZ. Her teaching and community work further extend her commitment to material care and accessibility in the ceramics field.
C/V
Kendall Traylor
Phoenix, AZ
Born 1999, Long Beach, CA
Education
2023 - 2026 Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, Arizona State University. Tempe, AZ
MFA: Three-year fully-funded graduate scholarship
2017 - 2022 California State University, Long Beach. Long Beach, CA
BFA Ceramics & Biomedical Illustration Prep Certification
Awards / Grants / RESIDENCIES
2026 Outstanding University Graduate Award, Arizona State University. Tempe, AZ
- Selected as the sole graduate student representative from the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts.
One of 16 Outstanding University Graduates recognized from approximately 8,000 master's and doctoral
students across ASU. Carried the university gonfalon during Commencement.
2025 ASU Change the World 2025 Winner, Arizona State University. Tempe, AZ
Changemaker Action Grant, Arizona State University. Tempe, AZ
- Project grant to advance ceramic recycling and sustainable initiatives.
2024 AAG Curran-Bleakney Scholarship, Arizona Artists’ Guild, Phoenix, AZ
Jumpstart Research Grant, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
- Research grant supporting development of a ceramic recycling system.
2023 Martin Wong Foundation Scholarship. First Prize in Ceramics/3D
Solo Exhibitions & Residencies
2026 Aggregate Bodies, MFA Thesis Show, Step Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
2025 International Artist Residency & Artist Lecture, The Pottery Workshop, Jingdezhen, China
- Competitive 3-week international residency and an invited artist lecture.
2022 Plantiful Undulation, BFA Culminating Show, Max L. Gatov Gallery, Long Beach, CA
Group Exhibitions
2026 Sculpt: Making Space, Jill Rosenzweig Memorial Sculpture Garden. Tucson JCC. Tucson, AZ
- One-year public outdoor installation
Patterns of Exchange, Goodmans Interior Structures. Phoenix, AZ
- Six-month public indoor installation
Open Lab: Work in Progress, Northlight Gallery. Phoenix, AZ
2026 Galbut Prize Exhibition, Gallery 100, Mirabella. Tempe, AZ
2025 Soil to Sculpture: The Art of Clay, Shemer Art Center and Museum. Phoenix, AZ.
We Are Everywhere: A (Con)Temporary Queer Visual Resource Center, Harry Wood Gallery, Tempe, AZ
International Ceramic Gift Exchange 2024/2025, Franz Rising Star Project, Taipei, Taiwan
Weird Flex 2024-25, ASU Humanities Institute, Tempe, AZ
2024 Historical to Hysterical, Harry Wood Gallery, Tempe, AZ
SHOW: Your Work, New School for Academics and Art, Tempe, AZ
Site x Arcosanti: body/architecture/landscape, Cosanti Foundation, Arcosanti, AZ
2024 Galbut Prize Exhibition, Gallery 100, Mirabella, Tempe, AZ
2023 I Love Lamp, Step Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
New Graduate Exhibition, Harry Wood Gallery, Tempe, AZ
Kink Show, Curator & Participant, Dennis W. Dutzi Gallery, Long Beach, CA, Curator & Participant
2022 Any Other Time But Now, Curator & Participant, Marilyn Werby Gallery, Long Beach, CA
Teaching Experience
2026-present
Life Drawing Instructor - Edna Vihel Arts Center. Tempe, AZ
Vocational Rehabilitation Job Coach & Case Manager - SEEDs for Autism. Phoenix, AZ
2025 Special Education Ceramics Instructor & VR Counselor - SEEDs for Autism. Phoenix, AZ
2024-2026 Instructor of Record - Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, Arizona State University. Tempe, AZ
Spring 2026 ART 111: Introduction to Drawing
Fall 2025 ART 261: Topic: Ceramics for Non-Major & ART 394: Ceramics Survey
Spring 2025 ART 261: Topic: Ceramics for Non-Major & ART 394: Ceramics Survey
Fall 2024 ART 111: Introduction to Drawing
2023-2024 Graduate Teaching Assistant - Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, Arizona State University. Tempe, AZ Fall 2023 ART 364/365: Ceramics Handbuilding I/II
Spring 2024 ARA 240: Encounters with Art
2022 Adult Special Education Ceramics Instructor - Creative Identity. Non-Profit. Anaheim, CA
2021 Children’s Ceramics Instructor - Clay on First. Long Beach, CA
PUBLICATIONS & PRESS 2026
“From California to China: Art student transforms debris into dialogue through ceramic practice,” Gigi Konecki-Brazeal. ASU News. April 27th
“From studio waste to system change,” Kevin Burshaw. The Graduate Insider: ASU Graduate College. February 2nd
“Recycled ceramics art: Kendall Traylor and the aesthetics of waste,” Lemon Art Magazine. 2026