Shio Kusaka has become known for her playful and open approach to the ceramic medium, crafting vessels and figures that are both functional and abstract. She merges drawing and sculpture, typically moving between abstraction and representation, developing a distinct formal language in her use of shape, pattern, color, and glazing techniques that make reference to the Yayoi period Japanese pottery, the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, and the wall drawings of Sol LeWitt alike.

In her ceramics, which are often made in distinct series and sometimes displayed in groups, Kusaka embraces organic imperfections and poetic irregularities, relying on her characteristic sense of line and color to articulate unique forms and produce complex patterns with a heightened awareness of difference and repetition. This same concept is reflected in her first edition with Pace Prints, a set of six etchings depicting her stylized vessels, once again merging various techniques into a simplistic yet elegent display.

Shio Kusaka received a BFA from the University of Washington in Seattle. She currently lives and works in Los Angeles, and is represented by David Zwirner, greengrassi and The Modern Institute.