The Rookwood Pottery was probably the most famous company making art pottery in the United States in the late nineteenth century into the twentieth century, achieving an international reputation and consistently promoting artistic innovation. Proud that the pottery was "an artist's studio, not a factory," Rookwood Pottery is known for achieving exceptionally fine glazes and successful experimental designs. By assimilating the strengths of myriad aesthetic movements from the American Art Pottery Movement to Art Nouveau and Art Deco, Rookwood Pottery encouraged decorators to try unusual subjects and to explore new techniques. Gerald and Virginia Gordon have created a magnificent collection fully representing all aspects of Rookwood pottery production, which they have generously given to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The Philadelphia Museum of Art now has one of the finest and most comprehensive collections of Rookwood pottery in existence. Each piece is gloriously reproduced in colour. This collection has never before been published. The story of the creation of Rookwood Pottery and its quest for artistic creativity is told in the main essay by noted Rookwood scholar Nancy Owen.
Author of Rookwood and the Industry of Art (2001), Nancy Owen is a lecturer in American art and gender studies at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. A full checklist documenting all the objects, a selected bibliography, and an index of makers and decorators complete the presentation of this volume.