THE POTTER'S ART

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 14, 17 July 1939, Page 14

THE POTTER'S ART

ANCIENT CRAFT DEVELOPS

The endurance of the material against heat determined the quality of porcelain, said Mrs. E. Mayer, Karori, during a talk to members of the Business Girls' Lyceum of the Y.W.C.A. recently on the subject of the art of pottery-making. The quality of porcelain was also affected by the glazes used, she said, glazing being the secret of the success of pottery. The Japanese were the masters of the art of glaze-making and the European experts had tried hard to learn their technique. Pottery was originally made of clay and mud, but the better class of porcelain was now made of kaolin, the speaker stated. The article was shaped by the hands, while the foot peddled the wheel which turned the pottery round. Before the article was put in the oven to be burned, it was decorated and then glazed. The pottery was made by the peasants in their workshops and also by artists in their studios. The colours used by the peasants were made from lead, and it was that material which made the metallic shine. Unfortunately, the beautifully moulded objects could not stand up to the intense heat of gas or electricity. In about 1900, artists had tried' their hand at potterymaking, but they could not compete with the perfected work of the artisans. The introduction of aluminium and enamel had forced most of the peasant workshops to close down, and kitchen utensils were now produced in large factories. The principle of making pots and bowls in factories was the same as that employed by the peasants in their workshops. Mrs. Mayer has recently returned from Cologne, and described the suitability of the clay round that city for pottery-making. Cologne, as in the case of many other districts, was influenced by many nations, and each nation had. left traces of its culture, and samples of pottery from Spain, northern and southern Italy, France, the south of Switzerland, and the Black Forest in Germany, were displayed in the museum showcase. The work in each district had its own characteristic differences of shape, design, and colour, the beautiful pottery of the Black Forest being decorated with the flowers found in the surrounding meadows. Mrs. Mayer concluded by stating that even a study of pottery showed how dependent the nations were on one another. The president of the club, Miss A. Dick, on behalf of the members, thanked Mrs. Mayer for her talk. The trustees of the Art Gallery, who had opened the Art Gallery to the club, were also thanked.