A Taste for the "Exotic"?
Having blossomed into teen-hood in the 1970s, I often like to compare some of the “art” that emerged in the 1800s with the 1970s. It’s like, “what were they thinking?” Th ...
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Curator’s Corner
Something Completely Different
I am a big admirer of artists who produce porcelain. I don’t own any, but I sure love to see examples in museums. Porcelain was first produced in China in the first millennium CE and in Japan in ...
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Curator’s Corner
Mesoamerica-North American Connection
I just finished my part of work on the revision of our studio book about clay and so I thought I would show you a ceramic artwork this week. As an art historian, I enjoy making connections between cul ...
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Curator’s Corner
Art in Everyday Life: Ancient Greece
As I’ve mentioned before, I resist the Western art historical tendency to consider the art of ancient Greece and Rome as the high points of artistic achievement, in a broad view of art around th ...
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Curator’s Corner
Art in Everyday Life
While looking at images for the revision of one of our books, I came across an image of a metal pitcher from the 1930s. It had such clean, modern lines that it could easily be mistaken for a contempor ...
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Curator’s Corner
The Japan/North Carolina Connection
Ceramic traditions vary greatly around the world. In some cultures, the material is considered all-important, while in other cultures, the form or shape is the emphasis. Techniques for production of c ...
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Curator’s Corner
"Anonymous" Artists
While visiting Cape Cod last weekend, I painted with my friend Erika and produced two little landscapes in acrylic. When I got home I thought, “Geez, where am I going to put these?” M ...
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Curator’s Corner
Mayan Ceramics
I find it very interesting (in my geeky, art historian way) to contrast the art of cultures from all over the non-Western world and compare them to the “epitome” of aesthetics in the West, ...
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Curator’s Corner
World's Oldest Ceramic Vessels
Most people think of ancient Greek painted ceramic vessels when you mention the word “ancient pottery.” What I think of are the sophisticated, elegant, and beautiful ceramic vessels of one ...
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