| Showing 1 of 1 |
|
Howard Kottler
American(1930–1989)
Royal Paisley Pot
1969
Porcelain
17 x 15.5 x 5 in.
Museum Permanent Collection
1984.772
Royal Paisley Pot combines the architectural stylings of Art Deco with mass-produced adhesive decals, and the factory production technique of slip casting. Though it resembles many objects within the vessel tradition, Kottler’s Royal Paisley Pot is more sculpture than its name implies. This juxtaposition between sculpture and pottery is playful in Kottler’s work. While on a Fulbright Scholarship to the Arabia Ceramics Factory in Helsinki, Finland, Kottler mastered the use of decals, using them effectively to create political commentary, biting satire, and coded messages. In the late-1960s, paisley was associated with psychedelic style and countercultural music. Additionally, paisley bandanas were used by gay and bisexual men as a coded method of communication to signify interest in sexual practices. Kottler delighted in layering subversive content in his ceramic production.
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Howard Kottler originally pursued a career in optometry, receiving his Bachelor of Arts in Biological Science from the Ohio State University in 1952. Unhappy with his course work, Kottler began experimenting with clay through elective courses. After a year in optometry school, Kottler dropped out and returned to OSU for his Master of Arts, which he completed in 1956. He went on to study with Maija Grotell at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, where he received his Master of Fine Arts in 1957. Howard Kottler is one of the few people to achieve a PhD in ceramics, when it was briefly offered by OSU, which he finished in 1964. He was hired by the University of Washington where he, along with Robert Sperry and Patti Warashina, made the institution’s ceramics program one of the most important and vibrant educational centers in the United States.
Matthew Limb
Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:
- Ceramic Case 9: Texture and Lustre , 8/21/2012 - 5/6/2014
- Lighting the Fire: Ceramics Education in the American West , 8/16/2016 - 12/10/2016
- Unearthed , 8/23/2022 - 5/14/2023
Also found in
Click a portfolio name to view all the objects in that portfolio
This object is a member of the following portfolios:
Your current search criteria is: Objects is "Royal Paisley Pot".