Eastside Culture Crawl's 30th year features ceramicists Jenna Kim and Mika Abele

The Eastside Culture Crawl runs November 19 to 22 across Vancouver's Eastside Arts District, with Thursday and Friday hours from 5 to 10 p.m. and weekend hours from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is free. The event site lists the participating artists and maps.

Jenna Kim, a Korean-born artist who works in white porcelain and sculptural lighting, makes modern takes on the moon jar, a spherical, white-glazed vessel from Korea's Joseon dynasty. Her perforated lamp "Blooming Light" carries floral designs pierced through the clay so light passes through, and "The River in the Moon" has a carved surface that suggests flowing water under a full moon. She works from the ARC studio at 1701 Powell Street under the name Dogi Jagi Ceramics, and this is her second year as a Crawl artist.

Kim picked up pottery at 14 as a hobby. She earned a technical certificate in 2013 and spent seven years on South Korea's ceramics team at the Skills Olympics. "I often explore sculptural forms through carving and piercing, allowing light to pass through the clay and become part of the piece itself," she told Stir by email. "It became the way I wanted to build my life and communicate with the world." On the asymmetry in her jars, she said: "I allow the clay to guide the form."

Mika Abele, a ceramicist and illustrator based in Vancouver, has come to the Crawl since she was a kid. This year she is on the other side of the studio door, exhibiting at CLAE Studio at 729 Gore Avenue for the first time. Abele graduated from Emily Carr University of Art + Design and has shown in solo and group exhibitions across the Lower Mainland.

May Ann Villanueva, the third ceramicist named in the coverage, is not described here. Full artist listings and maps are on culturecrawl.ca. The festival opens Thursday, November 19 at 5 p.m.