Art History & Politics in Clay Formation. For centuries, ceramicists made bowls, cups and urns in ancient Rome and Greece. Clay was only about functionality. Today, artists are expressing their feelings about mediation, art history, politics and emotions of love, hate and fear in the plasticity of clay. The Artemis Gallery features the ceramic visions of more than 30 artists from all over the world including Russia, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Nicaragua, United States and South America.