Common Ground

Common Ground is a community-activated artwork by Los Angeles – based artist Adam Silverman that celebrates American pluralism while also fostering human connection through shared meals and collaborative installations. With the participation of nearly one hundred people from across the country, Silverman collected clay, water, and wood ash from all fifty American states, Washington DC, and the five inhabited US Territories (Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands). He then combined these materials to make a single, fully integrated, new material, erasing the borders of statehood and reimagining the country as a single, unified place. Silverman used this new combined material to make the glazes for Common Ground , which includes a tableware set of fifty-six plates, fifty-six bowls, fifty-six cups, as well as fifty-six ceremonial pots. The 224 objects are similar to one another in form, size, and composition, yet each is intentionally unique—just like each human being. The ceramics are intended as tools to facilitate conversation and build community. A major new addition to the Skirball's permanent museum collection, Common Ground will be exhibited and activated through January 4, 2026, during which time Silverman will also serve as the Skirball's Artist in Residence. In collaboration with foodways scholar Dr. Scott Alves Barton and supported by local chefs as well as the Skirball's executive chef, Sean Sheridan, the Skirball will host a series of communal gatherings during this year-long exhibition, bringing people from different communities together using the plates, bowls, cups, and ceremonial pots that comprise Common Ground . During a time of widespread division in the United States, Common Ground hopes to bridge political, cultural, and socioeconomic differences by bringing people together around the expansive possibilities of shared human experiences.