Fall 2026: Ceramics, Memory, and Neighborhood Storytelling
Program Dates: October 21 – December 2 | No workshop November 25
Location: Taller Puertorriqueño, 2600 N. 5th Street, Philadelphia
Schedule: Wednesdays, 5:00–8:00 PM
This fall, Tramando welcomes Philadelphia-born Puerto Rican ceramic artist Elianna Pérez for a six-week ceramics workshop exploring clay as a medium for storytelling, memory, and community expression.
Participants will learn foundational ceramic techniques including handbuilding, surface design, and sculptural construction while drawing inspiration from their own neighborhoods, personal histories, and cultural experiences. Elianna’s practice is rooted in her upbringing in Hunting Park and incorporates the visual language of everyday neighborhood life, from gate patterns and fire hydrants to ice cream trucks and other familiar urban symbols.
Throughout the workshop, participants will create functional and sculptural ceramic works while exploring how personal and collective memory can take shape through clay.
Workshop Dates:
- October 21 & 28 | 5:00–8:00 PM
- November 4, 11 & 18 | 5:00–8:00 PM
- December 2 | 5:00–8:00 PM
Sliding Scale Registration:
- Community Rate: $150
- Supported Rate: $250
- Full Rate: $375
Participants are invited to select the rate that best reflects their ability to pay. All registration tiers include the full six-week workshop experience and materials.
No previous ceramics experience is required.
Priority registration is available for residents of Fairhill, Kensington, and Norris Square.
Space is limited.
About Eliana Pérez
Elianna Pérez is a Puerto Rican, Philadelphia-born ceramic artist and recent graduate of Syracuse University. During her time as a Studio Arts major at Syracuse, Pérez studied printmaking in Florence, Italy, later earning the prestigious VPA scholar award. She additionally received the Bobby Kadis Scholarship to attend Penland School of Craft. In summer 2024, Pérez attended her first artist residency at Red Lodge Clay Center in Montana as a member of the Advanced Project Student Network.
Pérez has exhibited work at the Woodmere Art Museum, Tyler School of Art, Syracuse University, and the Red Lodge Clay Center Gallery. Her work explores themes of community and second-generation Puerto Rican identity, using many symbols of her life and neighborhood growing up in Hunting Park, Philadelphia, like gate patterns, ice cream trucks and fire hydrants.
During her four years of undergrad, Pérez worked as a Studio Technician for the ceramics department at Syracuse University. She has now returned to her hometown of Philadelphia to serve as the Functional Gallery Programs Assistant at The Clay Studio, while maintaining an art practice from The Clay Studio’s facilities and a home studio.
About Our Sliding Scale
Taller Puertorriqueño is committed to keeping high-quality arts programming accessible while also paying artists fairly for their time, knowledge, and labor.
Our sliding scale reflects both of those commitments. The Full Rate represents the market value of a multi-week, artist-led workshop, while our reduced rates allow us to offer the same experience at a more accessible cost. All participants receive the same workshop experience, and we do not ask anyone to demonstrate financial need.
We ask that you choose the rate that most honestly reflects what you are able to pay. If you are able to pay the Full Rate, we encourage you to do so. Your registration helps keep lower-cost options available to others while ensuring our teaching artists are fairly compensated.
Workshop fees also directly support Estudio, Taller Puertorriqueño’s free Young Artist Program, helping us continue providing arts education and creative opportunities for young people in our community.
This model allows us to keep access at the center of our work while valuing artists’ labor and reinvesting in the next generation of artists.
Related Programs:
Opening Reception
Friday July 24, 2026 | 5:30pm - 8pm
Module 1 Participants: Natural Dyes and Fiber Spinning
Luz Crespo | Neury “Tito” Miguel Caba | Rebecca Lamar | Maria Mills-Torres | Jahmitza Perez | Grace Lozada-Olivencia | Sonimarie Rodriguez | Siani Colon | Towanda L. Tynes | Roxanne Bell | Marquila Herrera | Iris Maldonado | Lori Waselchuk | Olivia Caro | Emma Karchner | Will Joseph Harihan Jr. | Tess Patricia | Marilyn Rodriguez