Bowl (no. 243)

Clifton Art Pottery

1905-06 (ca.)

4 x 12 1/2 inches

Terra cotta

2020.4.5

Gift of Theodore M. Lytwyn

Impressed “CLIFTON” on base 2x; impressed model no. “248” on base (2x); illegible impression on exterior wall; in pencil: “0 [with line through] 7 +” over “1595”; impressed "FOUR MILE RUIN"

Amongst the more noteworthy of Clifton Art Pottery’s developments was its embrace in 1906 of Native American styles, a trend that had existed throughout decorative arts in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. As Irene Sargent wrote in The Craftsman in 1903: “Movements to preserve in the midst of the materializing and leveling influences of our times the arts of primitive people should be recognized and fostered…. For such movements are purely and simply the expression of the instinct of self-preservation native to humanity.” Unlike Stickley and others—who adopted Native American motifs and designs as decorative elements placed onto their products—Long meticulously studied historical examples and replicated both the form and decoration. An author for Crockery & Glass Journal praised the line noting “The decorations exemplify the beautiful ideals, sentiments, religious beliefs and symbolisms of the aboriginal American Indians, and in this regard the ware is educational besides possessing ornamental and practical purposes.” In hindsight, while the pottery was praised in pottery industry periodicals, it failed to gain a foothold in the more artistically minded journals of the day and struggled to gain acceptance as an art pottery worthy of serious consideration.