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Show N Decorative Arts in the Home-American Pottery v , By Marguerite B Williams The dishes that we have today in our homes are very different from' I those in which the Indian squaw cooked reindeer meat for her brave and j the evolution through 1 which dishes1 went before they reached their present pres-ent state w'as suggested in the article nt List week. In early times In our country, pottery pot-tery was made to supply the modes! I needs of th colonist1-. The best known of this was made in West Virginia, There were coarse earthenware men sils made to take the place of the wooden trenchers and many molasses and preserve Jars, bui they often have a charm not found in similar articles' now made by machinery Early Anier- ican pieces may be found at the Art institute, and no one can deny the j fascination of the highly glazed Ben-nlngton Ben-nlngton ware made in the shape of chocolate colored dogs and fat old gentlemen holding mugs, or the sgraf-flato sgraf-flato pie plates incised with naive equestrian tigurcs The oldest of our potteries now existing, ex-isting, the Rookwood. is no doubt the best known. This was established in Cincinnati in 188U by Mrs. Mariu L. Storcr. who named the pottery after her father's estate. In the early days it was the fashion with the ladles of Cincinnati to decorate pieces made and fired at the pottery. Mrs. Storer had unusual initiative gifts, and in the years Rookwood earned off a gold medal al ihe Paris exposition. Later it passed into the hands of others but it has always been an art enterprise, where everything is done to develop the highest type of art un-affected un-affected by efforts to win trade. Rookwood was the first to make a texture glaze which permits the use oi colors in decoration beneath the delicate veil of glaze. This ware Is difficult to make, and it is said that no commercial potter could afford to take the risks which they do, as so many pieces are destroyed iu the making. The Pewabic pottery made In Detroit De-troit also owes its beginning and success suc-cess to a woman The name of this comes from the Indian word lor copper cop-per colored clay. In the quaint little seacoast town of Marblehead. Mass., there is made a ware of great delicacy deli-cacy and refinement. When hardly a boy, A. E. Baggs, who is now the lead ing spirit of this pottery, was called In to establish work In clay as a means of interesting nervous patients when under medical care. Another ware, the Paul Revere, originated in the same way in Boston This is eas lly recognized from its decorations, which consist of animals, quite in a I n I humorous note. Though made in bread and milk bowls and plates for children chil-dren deeoi a l ed with bunnies, crowing I cocks and snow white camels, his ware has an appeal to the grown-up 1 as well. So the art of pottery may be a very indigenous art, utilizing the clay which is near al hand, and some of our pot teries have further attempted to make it indmenous by using as their motifs In decorations 'he plants and flowers about them. Thus, pottery may be one of the most expressive of our arts. What gives more distinction to a I room lhan a well shaped and beautifully beauti-fully glazed vase or bowl which maybe may-be useful lor holding flowers, as a base for a lamp or as a receptacle for holding hold-ing various articles we use to decorate our homes Many schools have undertaken the Dialling ol pottery. The best known of these has been Newcomb college in j New Orleans, where students carry out their designs in plastic form. Their pottery is made in quiet blues and greens. Other American wares are Dedham, Fulper. Van Briggle. Binn, j w alrath, Grueby (now no longer made) I an ! that of the North Bennett Street Industrial school of Boston. The only Chicago pottery of national reputation j has been the Teco ware, made from native clays at Terra Cotta. ill , and I 11 is from a combination of the first ; two letters of the two words. Terra Cotta, that the name originated. At Lewis institute there is now a group of pottery workers under the leader- I ship of J. T. Webb. Pictures of pottery are unsatlsfac- . tory, as they fail to show the color 1 of the glaze. Art of different coun-di. coun-di. s is found in our modern wares. One suggests the Greek, another the ; Chinese and all types in the lines of, the arts and crafts style. M |