This study is a practice-based qualitative research that aims to examine how the female image is represented in ceramic sculpture through the application of slip painting, both at formal and symbolic levels. Throughout history, the female figure has not only been regarded as an expression of individual identity but also as a bearer of cultural identity, collective memory, and shared values, acquiring profound symbolic significance across diverse artistic productions. Within this context, slip painting, although traditionally employed as a decorative element on ceramic surfaces, is reinterpreted in contemporary artistic practices as a functional medium that enables the transmission of cultural and symbolic meanings. Within the scope of the study, three ceramic sculptures and one relief work were produced, and both technical analyses and symbolic interpretations were conducted on these forms. The data collection process was designed through the researcher’s direct engagement in artistic production practices and the use of self-documentation, while the obtained data were systematically examined using descriptive analysis, visual analysis, and symbolic interpretation techniques. The findings indicate that slip applications not only render the female figure visible at the formal level but also reconstruct it symbolically by reflecting conceptual dimensions such as productivity, resistance, sanctity, and identity. These results demonstrate that traditional techniques employed in ceramic art can be revitalized within the framework of contemporary artistic production, while also underlining the necessity of addressing aesthetic, technical, and cultural dimensions through an integrative perspective in art education. Consequently, this research contributes to both artistic practice and art education, proposing a new ground of interpretation situated at the intersection of tradition and contemporaneity, thereby highlighting the potential of ceramic art as a medium for cultural expression, symbolic narration, and pedagogical enrichment.

Ceramic sculpture, slip decoration, female figure, arts-based research