John Toki

John Toki has maintained a studio in Richmond, California, since 1974. His public commissions in California include a mural for Oakland City Hall and outdoor public sculptures installed in San Francisco, Orinda, Davis, and Sacramento. His work has been included in exhibitions at the Contemporary Art Center, Cincinnati, Ohio; Oceanside Museum of Art, California; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California.

An educator for over twenty-five years, Toki retired as a faculty member from the California College of the Arts in 2007. Throughout his career, he has conducted workshops and lectured widely, including at Kent State University, Ohio; University of California, Berkeley; Otis Art Institute, California; San Francisco Art Institute; and at colleges and institutions in Canada, Holland, Taiwan, and Turkey. He participated in residencies and workshops including Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, Maine; Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Colorado; Idyllwild Arts, California; and the Mendocino Art Center, California.

Toki was named Contra Costa College Distinguished Alumnus of the Year, and he was the recipient of the National Council on the Education of Ceramic Arts Outstanding Achievement Award. He has been honored by the City of Berkeley’s Mayor Tom Bates for John Toki Day, in appreciation of his contribution to the arts.

In addition to his art practice, Toki has been a textbook writer for over twenty-five years and has coauthored three books on ceramics: Hands in Clay, fifth edition; Make It in Clay second edition, McGraw Hill; and Fired by Ideals, Arequipa Pottery, Pomegranate Press. He is presently the associate director of Mission Clay Art and Industry Program, Corona, California, and supports the arts as a board member of the American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California.