Joan Mitchell, Preface for Chris

Joan Mitchell Preface for Chris, 1973 Born 1926. Chicago, Illinois; died 1992, Paris. France Oil on canvas 102 1/4 x 141 1/2 inches (overall) Gift of Rose M. Shuey, from the Collection of Dr. John and Rose M. Shuey CAM 2002.23 Joan Mitchell found inspiration in the surrounding world, although her preoccupation was not with the appearance of place but with her personal response to it, her feelings, thoughts and memories. In Preface for Chris, the original place that triggered the artist's imagination could be the lakefront in Chicago, her hometown, or her garden in Paris, the city where she spent most of her life. However, this place became completely transformed and reconfigured by the artist's broad and energetic brushwork. Large buoyant forms, punctuated by streaks of dripping paint, evolve and elapse, embroiled in a dynamic interaction with each other, like glimpses of the past or dreamlike visions. Although her painting technique evoked associations with Abstract Expressionism, ...

Eliel Saarinen (Designer), Tea Urn and Tray

Eliel Saarinen (Designer) Tea Urn and Tray, 1934, or earler Born 1873. Rantasalmi. Finland; Cranbrook. Resident Architect. 1925—1950; Cranbrook Academy of Art (CAA). Presrdent. 1 - 1946; CAA Director of Department of Architectureand Urban Design. 1946-1950; died 1950, Bloomfield Hills. Michigan Manufacturer: International Silver Company. Wilcox Silver Plate Division. Meriden. Connecticut Silverplate Urn: 14 5/8 x10 7/8 (diameter) inches Tray: 1/2 x 17 1/2 (diameter) inches. Gift of George Gough Booth and Ellen Scripps Booth through The Cranbrook Foundation CAM 1935.8.A and .B From his broad city plans and architecture to his detailed furniture and silverware designs, Eliel Saarinen sought balance between geometry and nature. His spherical tea urn with flat handles and round tray embodies futuristic design elements that helped define the Machine Age while its spire finial and linear spout reference nature. The urn is unique within a limited series manufactured for use at Cranbrook. This series includes two documented examples with ebony handles and lid inserts (still in the collection of ...

Mary Chase Stratton for Pewabic Pottery (Maker) Jar, 1932

Mary Chase Stratton for Pewabic Pottery (Maker) Jar, 1932, or earlier Born 1867. Hancock. Michigan; died 1961. Detroit. Michigan Pottery: Pewabic Pottery. Detroit, Michigan Cast stoneware clay 9 1/2 x 7 (diameter) inches Gift of George Gough Booth and Ellen Scripps Booth through The Cranbrook Foundation CAM 1932.13 Mary Chase Stratton's interest in ceramics began as a teen when she studied china painting in Detroit with Bohemian artist Franz Bischoff. After studying at the Art Academy of Cincinnati. Stratton helped establish the Detroit Keramic Club and later studied with Charles F. Binns in New York. At the turn of the century, Stratton began experimenting with various glaze formulas and firing techniques with Horace I. Caulkins, inventor of the Revelation China Kiln. Together they founded Pewabic Pottery in 1903. At the request of Pewabic enthusiast Charles Lang Freer, Stratton began experimenting with iridescent glaze effects and her interest shifted from form to color. This classic Arts and Crafts vase ...

Tagged: Ceramics, Pewabic