California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way
“California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way” is on exhibit now through June 3, 2012 at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. This exhibit features more than 300 items including furniture, ceramics, metalwork, fashion and textiles, as well as industrial and graphic design. It is the first major show to examine the influence of California designers on mid-Twentieth century product design.
Christopher Hawthorne in his review of “California Design” writes:
“California modernism was a distinct style from its earliest years. It traded the social conscience of the Bauhaus for an approach to design that was not only ‘looser, warmer’ and often ‘ad hoc,’ as Kaplan puts it in the catalog, and more expressive of local character, but also entirely comfortable with the notion of salesmanship and the realities of commerce. Indeed, of the exhibition’s four thematic sections, the one on ‘Selling California Modern’ arguably makes up the heart of the show. The other sections are ‘Shaping,’ on the early years of California modernism; ‘Making,’ on materials and fabrication; and ‘Living,’ on housing, furnishings and the indoor-outdoor postwar aesthetic made possible by a benign climate.” Read the entire review.
More information on “California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way” on the LACMA site.
Read our past post on photographer Julius Schulman and California architecture.
Julius Shulman (1910–2009), photographer, Pierre Koenig, architect, Stahl House (Case Study House #22), Los Angeles, 1960 © J. Paul Getty Trust. Used with permission. Julius Shulman Photography Archive, Research Library, Getty Research Institute (2004.R.10).
Source: http://www.lacma.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/Exhibition_Main/image/Shulman.jpg
Eva Zeisel (1906-2011)
It was with great sadness that we learned of the passing of revolutionary ceramic designer Eva Zeisel. Dr. Zeisel is perhaps best known for the porcelain dinnerware service that she designed for the Museum of Modern Art in 1946.
The video above is a clip from a 2002 documentary film about Eva Zeisel, “Throwing Curves.”
Read Dr. Zeisel’s obituary on The New York Times Web site.
Read our post on the artist from November 2010.
It’s All in the Details: Art Deco in the Bronx
Art Deco Buildings Blog has posted some fine examples of Art Deco architectural design in the Bronx. First off is the Herman Ridder Junior High School designed by Walter C Martin and dates from 1929-31. See more photos and read the entire post.
Tiles, Herman Ridder Junior High School, Bronx, NY (1929-1931), Walter C. Martin, Architect.
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dct66/3151485905/
Next, is an apartment building on The Grand Concourse. A frieze on the facade is shown below. Read more about the building.
Tiles, Apartment House, Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY, architect and date unknown.
Source: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3013/2891355247_a69c09fe66_m.jpg
Last is the 1934 Paul J. Rainey Memorial Gate at the Bronx Zoo with animals sculpted by Paul Manship. Read the post on Art Deco Buildings.
Paul Manship, Paul J. Rainey Memorial Gate (1934), Bronx Zoo.
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dct66/3506732077/
Art from the Land: Lucy M. Lewis
Lucy Martin Lewis, one of the best-known Acoma Pueblo Potters, was “largely responsible for the revival of Mimbres black-on-white pottery designs”(1). Miss Lewis lived her entire life “in the Acoma pueblo, a Pueblo Indian community and the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in North America”(2). Her exact date of birth is not known.
Lucy M. Lewis at work date unknown.
Source:http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oER9aFjWrL4/TWPQUltBI9I/AAAAAAAACLg/8KwbKLBJ9q4/s1600/lucylewis.jpg
At the age of seven Miss Lewis learned to make pottery from her great aunt (3).According to Alexander E. Anthony, Jr. of Adobe Gallery, Miss Lewis adhered to the Acoma tradition of pottery making: “taking only as much clay as she needed”(1), working with her hands using tools and pigments made from natural sources. Then, “finally, firing the finished pieces in an outdoor handmade kiln” (1). She also enjoyed travelling “around the country giving workshops in ceramics”(2). Her most famous designs are her polychrome and lightening designs (1). Miss Lewis’s work has been shown in numerous exhibitions and can be found in the collections many prestigious institutions including the Smithsonian Institution and the Museum of the American Indian (2).
Pot with Snake Fetish, circa 1970.
Source: http://www.shiprocktrading.com/img/1218668477_00l.jpg
A timeline of Miss’ Lewis’s career (courtesy of the Morgan Collection of Southwest Pottery, Wichita State University):
1920s - Began selling her pottery 1940s - Became well-known for her Acoma pottery
1950s - Started signing her work and entering her pottery into competitions
1983 - Awarded Outstanding Personal Contribution to the Art of New Mexico
- Received Woman of Achievement Award from Northwood University, Houston, Texas
1984 - Susan Peterson publishes Miss Lewis’ biography: Lucy M. Lewis: American Indian Potter
1991 - Awarded the Gold Medal from the American Craft Council - Entered last pottery show at the Santa Fe Indian Market
Above: Acoma Pot, 1970.
Source: http://www.collectibles-articles.com/antique/collectible-for-sale.php?itemID=200551449443
Above: Acoma Jar, circa 1960.
Source: http://bit.ly/gvOQBi
Right: Bird, circa 1978.
Source: http://www.trocadero.com/fromhemlockbrook/items/966088/catphoto.jpg
Miss Lewis died on March 12, 1992, yet her legacy lives on. Seven of her nine children “became highly regarded potters including: Ivan Lewis, Ann Lewis Hansen, Andrew Lewis, Emma Lewis-Mitchell, Mary Lewis Garcia, Delores Lewis Garcia and Carmel Lewis Haskaya”(3).
References
- Adobe Gallery. (n.d). Lucy M. Lewis. http://www.adobegallery.com/artist.php?artist_id=134
- Lucy M. Lewis Dies; Self-Taught Potter, 93 (1992, March 26). New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE7DB1231F935A15750C0A964958260
- Lowell D. Holmes Museum of Anthropology, Wichita State University. (n.d.) Lucy Martin Lewis http://www.holmes.anthropology.museum/southwestpottery/lucylewis.html
Additional Resources:
Dillingham, R. (1992). Acoma and Pueblo Pottery. Santa Fe: School of American Research Press.
Dillingham, R. (1994). Fourteen Families in Pueblo Pottery. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
Hayes, A. & Blom, J. (1996). Southwestern Pottery from Anasazi to Zuni. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Publishing.
Peterson, Susan. (1984). Lucy M. Lewis: American Indian Potter. Tokyo: Kodansha International, Ltd.
Peterson, Susan. (1997). Pottery of American Indian Women: The Legacy of Generations. New York: Abbeville Press.
See an appraisal of Miss Lewis’ work on Public Broadcasting’s Antiques Roadshow.
The Amazing Life and Career of Eva Zeisel
Eva Zeisel. (Circa 2001)
Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/be/Eva_Zeisel.jpg
Ceramicist Eva Zeisel was undoubtedly one of the most influential designers of the Twentieth Century. Her designs earned her major acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic, and her fantastic biography reads like novel or a Hollywood movie script. Eva entered the Royal Academy in Budapest to study painting at age 17, but at her mother’s suggestion left in 1924 to become an apprentice in the pottery industry. After achieving early success, she worked several years in Germany, then traveled to Russia where she worked to modernize the ceramic industry. Eventually she was appointed Artistic Director of China and Glass Industry. Despite her professional success, Eva was accused of plotting to kill Stalin and imprisoned for 16 months.(1) Immediately after her release, She was put on a train to Austria, and later escaped that country” on the last train out on the day of the Anschluss” (2). In 1938 Eva married Hans Zeisel in England; Hans had waited seven years for her. That year the couple arrived in New York with less than $100 between them (2).
In post-war United States Eva’s career really took off. Her iconic designs were manufactured by Hall China, Red Wing China, Castleton China, Noritake, Nikkon Toki, and Phillip Rosenthal (1) to name a few.
Eva Zeisel celebrated her hundredth birthday in 2006. Several retrospective exhibitions were held to celebrate her career.
For more resources on Dr. Zeisel’s life and work visit the Eva Zeisel Forum.
To see Eva’s work visit Eva Zeisel Originals.
Watch an interview from 2008 with Dr. Zeisel.
References
- Who is Eva Zeisel? http://www.evazeisel.org/who_is_eva_zeisel.html
- Eva Stricker Zeisel Chronology Jan 20, 2010. http://www.evazeisel.org/Eva%20Stricker%20Zeisel%20-%20Chronology%20January%2020,%202010.pdf
