Astrid Sleire

Astrid Sleire (b. 1961) is a Norwegian ceramic artist who graduated from The National College of Art and Design in Bergen in 1988. Her practice explores abstract sculptural forms that balance construction and fragility, often referencing architecture and landscape in transformation. Working in her studio in Bergen, she pursues an explorative and material-conscious approach that lends her ceramic universe a characteristic intensity. Sleire’s practice revolves around experimentation, a movement in material and form towards a precarious position and a balancing act, where the construction plays a supporting role while also making an immediate statement.

Sleire has presented pieces in invited and juried exhibitions in Norway and abroad. Her art has been purchased for a number of collections and museums, among them the City of Oslo Art Collection, the National Museum in Oslo, KODE Bergen, Sørlandets Kunstmuseum, Nordnorsk Kunstmuseum, Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum and Keramikmuseum Westerwald in Germany. She has carried out several commissions for art in the public space and is the recipient of the 2022 Finn Erik Alsos Memorial Award. Until 2023, she held a position as Associate Professor of Ceramics at The Art Academy, University of Bergen.

Sleire is currently participating in the 47th edition of the exhibition Tendenser called Knadd. Formet. Brent, which focuses on contemporary Nordic ceramics, at Galleri F15. Jeløya, Moss. Her work is also presented in the current exhibition Respons! Norsk Keramikk 1975-2026, at Senter for keramisk kunst, Ringebu. Earlier this year (2026) she showed the solo exhibition Folded Constructions, at Gallery Peach Corner in Copenhagen.

Some other exhibitions worth mentioning are: SKOG Art Space, Oslo (with Karin Blomgren); Brev til lyset (2024), Østfold kunstsenter, Fredrikstad; Opphold (2023), FORMAT, Oslo; Falle til føye (2023), Kunstgarasjen, Bergen; Bakkekontakt (2021), RAM gallery, Oslo; Fortune Tellers (2022/2023), curated by Randi Grov Berger, Kunsthall Grenland, Porsgrunn.

Visit Astrid Sleire’s website and Instagram page.