Exploring Race, Racism and Ideological Whiteness Through Porcelain

Explore important conversations about race, racism and ideological whiteness through the creative process of working with porcelain.

As part of the University of Westminster’s Black History Year Programme, this series of six hands-on workshops invites up to 12 participants to explore important conversations about race, racism and ideological whiteness through the creative process of working with porcelain.

These sessions will take place in the Fab Lab at the Marylebone Campus from 6-8pm on Wednesday evenings 11 February, 18 March, 29 April, 13 May, 10 June, 15 July 2026 and are open to everyone, regardless of experience or background. You will need to attend all sessions, so only sign up if you are able to.

Together, we will create simple porcelain pinch pots (small clay vessels shaped by hand), using the act of making as a starting point for shared conversations. This is a space for open, respectful dialogue – what some call a ‘brave space’ – where we learn from one another.

Victoria will be facilitating the workshops, but won’t be leading the conversation; instead, the focus is on co-learning and co-creating together. A commitment to attending the six sessions is required when signing up, so that we can develop trust as a group. Porcelain has a complex history. In the West, it became a symbol of wealth and whiteness – closely tied to colonialism and the profits of chattel slavery. In these sessions, we will reflect on this past while using porcelain in a new way: as a material for connection, discussion and creative resistance.

We will start the course by establishing the ground rules of ‘brave’ space participation and agreeing on what we would like to discuss in the sessions. I bring blue-and-white porcelain teabowls that have a number of potential conversation-starting prompts on them. Over the subsequent sessions, we will combine making activities with discussion and reflection. All materials and equipment will be supplied, including cloth aprons and latex-free gloves if required. Refreshments will be available, and participants will be able to keep what they make over the sessions.

Dr Victoria Burgher

Victoria is an artist, researcher and educator whose work explores creative participatory methods of anti-racist praxis. As a member of the global minority working on race, racism and ideological whiteness, she approaches this work with explicit attention to positionality and to the fact that the ongoing structures of coloniality demand collective, cross-racial responsibility. Her interdisciplinary, practice-based PhD was completed at the Centre for Research in Education, Arts and Media (CREAM), University of Westminster, in 2025.