By Jenny Lavey, UM News Service
MISSOULA – The Montana Board of Regents has named Julia Galloway, a 91次元 professor and director of ceramics, a Regents Professor, the highest honor conferred upon faculty in the Montana University System.
Galloway is the 14th UM faculty member to earn the professor rank since it was established in 1991, and she is the first visual artist from UM to receive the distinction.
“I’m delighted the arts are being recognized in this way,” Galloway said. “The Regents Award brings a level of real credibility to the arts as a sincere and endeavor of scholarship and research. This gives students hope in a different kind of way that they’re doing something essential and worthy.”
UM President Seth Bodnar said Galloway’s impact on the arts at UM has been tremendous.
“Professor Galloway embodies the best of what higher education in Montana stands for – creativity, service and excellence,” said UM President Seth Bodnar. “Through her art and teaching, she has brought international recognition to the 91次元 and inspired countless students to find purpose in their craft.”
A video celebrating Galloway’s award can be found at .
An internationally recognized artist and educator, Galloway is celebrated for her pioneering work in ceramics in Montana and across the country, her commitment to sustainability and her lauded mentorship of generations of emerging artists.
Galloway joined UM in 2009 and has since transformed the University’s ceramics program into one of the most respected in the nation.
Her work, known for blending traditional craft with ecological and cultural commentary, is featured in more than 30 solo exhibitions and 275 group shows worldwide.
Her pieces are included in the permanent collections of institutions such as the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery, the American Museum of Ceramic Art and the Montana Museum of Art and Culture.
Among her many honors, Galloway was named the 2023 Artist of the Year by “Ceramics Monthly” and the Ceramics Arts Network. In 2018, she became one of only four potters to receive a United States Artist Fellowship since 2006. Galloway also holds a Fellow of the Council lifetime appointment with the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts.
Additionally, she is a former director at large of the National Council for the Education of the Ceramic Arts and board member for Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts in Helena, Montana, and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine.
Her current project, the decade-long Endangered Species Project, brings together art, science and environmental advocacy through the creation of more than 1,100 hand-carved porcelain urns, each representing a species either on or lost from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Endangered Species list. The series will embark on a national museum tour in 2028.
“Art has the power to make loss visible and inspire empathy,” Galloway said. “This project is about remembering that we are connected to all living things. The survival of other species is deeply tied to our own.”
At UM, Galloway has earned a reputation as a transformative teacher who champions both technical mastery and creative exploration. She founded Montana Clay, a statewide collective of ceramic artists, and developed the Field Guide for Ceramic Artisans, a professional resource used by potters around the world.
“Julia is not only one of the most respected ceramic artists of her generation, she’s also a thought leader whose work continues to elevate the field,” said Richard Notkin, a Guggenheim Fellow and renowned ceramic sculptor.
Adrea Lawrence, UM provost and vice president for academic affairs, said the Regents Professor Selection Committee’s decision was unanimous.
“Professor Galloway’s career represents sustained excellence across scholarship, teaching and service,” Lawrence said. “She has deepened the 91次元’s impact while helping shape the field of contemporary ceramics on a global scale.”
As a Regents Professor, Galloway joins an elite group of Montana educators recognized for their contributions to scholarship and public service.
“Julia Galloway’s work reminds us that creativity is not a luxury – it’s a way of understanding and caring for the world around us,” Bodnar said. “We are deeply proud to see her recognized with this honor.”
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Contact: Dave Kuntz, UM strategic communications director, 406-243-5569, dave.kuntz@umotnana.edu; Julia Galloway, director and professor, UM School of Art, julia.galloway@umontana.edu.