Introduction:

The art of “Pottery” is certainly amongst the most popular and longstanding crafts known to mankind. In addition to that it is also one of the most durable materials existent on our planet. In almost every archeological discovery almost, without any exception, the remains that have been found included pots, bowls and other kinds of vessels made of clay. This is a standing proof of the fact that firstly pottery is a highly enduring material and can last for ages and secondly the art of pottery is indisputably amongst the oldest and primitive form of art. Prehistoric (sometimes Neolithic) remains of pottery, e.g., in Scandinavia, England, France, Italy, Greece, and North and South America, have proved of great importance in archaeology and have often supplied a means of dating and establishing an early chronology. Pottery has also served the historical and literary records as historians and archeologists have found useful inscriptions (in ancient Assyrian and Babylonian writings) upon clay tablets that have helped them in understanding and solving various mysteries.

The history of pottery dates back to as far as 1500 B.C. when the use of glazes, such as the famous greens and blues, became known in Egypt . Most prominent form of pottery, which deserves an explicit mention, was the early Aegean pottery of the Minoan and Mycenaean periods that was known for its rounded painted decoration. It was these times when painted and glazed bricks were in casual use especially in Assyria and Neo-Babylonia. The Ishtar gate in Babylon is considered to be a wonderful example of the ancient majolica technique. The Greeks also were very skilful potters who used to make vases (800–300 B.C. ) that were extremely delicate and beautiful not only in terms of symmetry of form but also for their presentation and outlook. Different color schemes were chosen for those vases (such as red, black, blue and multicolored) that made them appear all the more attractive

In the field of pottery China was also not too far from others. This is evident from the fact that painted pottery of the Neolithic age has been found in China . By the second century B.C. the Early Han period had developed a green glaze that may have come from the Middle East . According to certain sources in the Sui period ( A.D. 581–618) and the T'ang period (618–906), porcelain and porcelaneous ware, which were envied by the west, began to be produced and exported to Korea , Japan and some parts of the Islamic world. However, technical knowledge was kept private and no transfer of information took place.

Islamic potters were basically concentrated in Baghdad in the tenth century which at that time happened that time was essentially the center and hub of different kinds of Islamic cultural activities. Blue and green clear glazes were in great use, and lusterware was for the first time applied as an overglaze. Lusterware was highly developed under the Fatimites in Egypt (969–1171), and the technique continued in use at major pottery centers over the centuries that followed. It was in the thirteenth century that due to the Mongol domination of Persia came a new age of Chinese influence to Islamic pottery making. A worthy example that illustrates the aesthetics of Islamic architecture in the fifteenth century is that of Blue mosque at Tabriz that has utilized ceramic tiles in huge quantities.

The examples of pottery found in Peru , Mexico , and the SW United States demonstrates appreciable craft in color, form, and decorative motifs. The work of Baked-clay by colonists in North America started in the year 1612 with the coming of bricks and tiles in Virginia and Pennsylvania . In these states and among the Dutch settlers of New York , potteries were soon established. The first whiteware was produced in the year 1684. A stoneware factory was opened in New York in 1735, and the Jugtown pottery of North Carolina was first produced in the year 1750. In Massachusetts and Pennsylvania Terra-cotta works were being operated after the middle of the eighteenth century. Palatinate refugees produced slip-decorated and graffito earthenware and their product formed the foundation of Shenandoah pottery.

The first time fine china was made for America was in the year 1769 in Philadelphia . The potteries of Bennington , Vt. , which opened in 1793, were known especially for their stoneware jugs; a variety of stoneware was also produced in several locations in New York State . One of the important centers of the industry was East Liverpool , Ohio that produced the first American Rockingham ware in the year 1839. Also widely produced in the United States were redware, ironstone, and yellowware. Another center, begun in 1852 at Trenton , N.J. , made fine Belleek or eggshell china. The Centennial Exposition of 1876 in Philadelphia and the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago did much to revive the spirit and culture of pottery as a popular form of art.

The twentieth century brought with itself a flourishing revolution for the American art pottery. It was in this period that magnificent pieces of art made by some of the most noteworthy artisans came to the forefront. Even companies started taking interest in the promotion and furtherance of pottery. Some important examples in this regard are the Rookwood Pottery and Cincinnati Art Pottery. Much collected in the decades that followed, this art pottery was created in such styles as art nouveau, arts and crafts, and art deco. Furthermore there was tremendous activity in the field of exquisite ceramic works. Despite the fact that there has been amazing development in mass-production techniques and synthetic materials the demand for handcrafts has not gone down. Apart from this there are a number of artisans who are involved in making utilitarian objects by using different pottery production methods. Besides this there is a multitude of locals who continue to create a number of vessels adapted from traditional forms.

Pottery is formed while clay is in its plastic form. Either a long piece of clay is coiled and then smoothed, or the clay is centered upon a potter's wheel (used in Egypt before 4000 B.C. ) that spins the clay while it is being shaped by the hand, or thrown. Decoration may be incised, and the piece is allowed to dry to a state of leather hardness before firing it in a kiln. The type of finish, depending on the kind or number of glazes, dictates the total number of firings. When slip and graffito are used, they are applied before the first firing. There are two types of fires namely reducing and oxidizing. The former removes oxygen while the latter, a smokeless fire, adds it. Reduction and oxidation change the color of the fired clay and gave early potters their palette of red, buff, and black.

Face Jugs:

Brief Introduction:

With the passage of time the art of face jugs continued to flourish and more and more potters felt inclination towards this particular form of pottery. A majority of people holds the view that face jugs were primarily made to contain poisonous or toxic content. There are however a number of accounts regarding the evolution of face jugs as to why were they made, what is the inspiration behind them and other such details. Some say that they were made to scare children others opine that they were used to hold poisonous substances and therefore a hooligan face jug is a good way to keep people out. However, historians believe that the first face jugs came about 200 years ago. Furthermore, it is also widely believed that slave potters of Africa brought the tradition of face jug pottery.

Face jugs are also known as ugly jugs and grotesque jugs. They are amongst the most popular form of art that has been continuously tremendous admiration and fame in the masses. The practice of face jug pottery began some time in the 19 th century and since then it has continued to maintain its place in the hearts of art lovers. It is also believed that it was an African slave by the name of David Drake who brought the art of face jug pottery into peoples’ notice. In those times potters used to work like dogs to meet the demands for utilitarian ware. They were made to make all sorts of vessels from mugs to bedpans, serving bowls to pickling crocks, and quite understandably it had a direct bearing on the promotion of pottery as a creative art. It was Mr. Drake who began writing scripts on the face jugs that he used to create as method of self-expression. It was perhaps from hereon that the practice gained massive popularity and Drake became a trendsetter.

The Civil War further stimulated the demand for pottery. There were a lot of potteries on Southern plantations. The scarcity of jobs was another factor that boosted the recruitment of slaves, mostly of Afro-American origin, into pottery. From thereon it was basically because of their own efforts and initiatives that they started making small effigy face vessels for their own use.

Pottery of North and South Carolina :

In North Carolina a genuine industry of pottery came into being during the colonial rule. Most of the potters concentrated at a place called Catawba Valley before the Civil War. Presently there are numerous traditional folk potters working in the Catawba Valley and in the nearby areas. Some of the most prominent “potter locations” are Valdese, Lenoir, Hickory, Morganton, Lincolnton, and Vale. However Catawba Valley is the heart of potter activity and is widely acknowledged as the foremost hub of folk pottery across the globe. Perhaps the most unique piece of Catawba pottery is the Face Jug. The history of southern face jugs starts with slave potters in the Edgefield region of South Carolina before the Civil War. Face jugs have been made in North Carolina since the early 1900s, and some may have been made even earlier. Today it is one of the most popular Catawba valley pieces. The majority of the Catawba Valley potters are concentrated along Highway 10, Southeast of Hickory, between Newton and Vale. 

Amongst the most eminent and well known potters of Catawba Valley include Burlon Craig, perhaps the best known of the Southern Folk potters who passed away in 2002. Other important names worthy of mention are Steve Abee, Charles Lisk, Kim Ellington, Albert Hodge, Joe Reinhardt, Michelle Flowers, Ben Allman, Walter Fleming, Ray Hicks, Richard Kale, and Bolick Pottery. Almost every one of them has well established and running potteries in Catawba. 

Famous Potters of North and South Carolina :

• Burlon B. Craig Pottery, Catawba County , Vale, and North Carolina :

Burlon Craig can easily be titled as the champion of the contemporary folk pottery. He took to this art in 1930s and continued perfecting it since then. Undoubtedly if one excludes Burlon Craig’s masterpieces from the scene there won’t be much for Catawba Valley to boast about. Burlon is therefore the identity and prestige of Catawba valley potters. Introduced to pottery making as a teenager, Craig worked for various potters until the end of the 1930s. After a stint in the war Burlon permanently settled in Catawba Valley , North Carolina and revitalized an almost wiped out folklore in that area. Firing in the Groundhog kiln several times a year. Using hand dug clay and his own glaze mixtures, Burlon started trying his hands on pottery as a casual activity. It was only later that he adopted pottery making and farming as a full time profession after his retirement from 20 years of furniture employment. In the initial stages of his career he restricted himself to functional pottery such as jugs, jars, milk crocks and pitchers. However, subsequently, at the advice of a friend, Burlon started creating face jugs and snake jugs. These wares became exceedingly popular and hence were regarded as guaranteed sell-outs at his kiln openings.

In 1975 Craig began stamping his pottery, B.B. Craig, Vale, NC, and he was well on his way as a genuine, well known folk potter. Before the 1970s, little of Burlon's pottery was signed, the few pieces you signed from before this period, were signed using a nail, or some sharp instrument. There are pieces signed both Burlon B. Craig, and just BB. Craig. Some time during the 1970s legend goes that Rodney Cline had a BBC stamp carved for Burlon, and that was when they first started stamping. A later stamp says "B.B. Craig Vale, NC". It was the time when he was under tremendous media attention and was continuously featured in various magazines and the book, Turners and Burners: The Folk Potters of North Carolina. However, Burlon’s most impressive wave of popularity and recognition came when he was awarded the National Folk Heritage award by the National Endowment of the Arts in 1984.

Without any exaggeration, since the 1980’s it has been a consistent pattern that whenever Burlon had announced sale of wares in his kiln openings, it took only minutes for its yard to get emptied. In the 90’s he resorted to the drawing of numbers to insure many who traveled far and near a better chance at his wares without being trampled in the process. Mr. Craig passed away Sunday, July 7, 2002 . His death has created a huge cavity which perhaps would take centuries to get filled. Burlon Craig could be called the “God Father” of present Catawba Valley potters. Indisputably all the following potters must have gotten a direct or indirect inspiration from his skill and benevolence. Mr. Craig's son, Don Craig, and grandson, Dwayne Craig, are both potters. 

• Kathy Kennedy Richards, Lincolnton , NC :

Kathy is also a noteworthy potter from Lincolnton , North Carolina . She specializes in a very unique form of pottery. Unusual shapes, forms, and more. Kathy is a fourth generation potter. Her Great Grandfather Julius Alexander Kennedy, grandfather D. Alexander Kennedy, founded the Kennedy pottery in Wilkesboro.  

• Reinhardt Brothers Pottery, Vale, North Carolina :

Harvey Ford Reinhardt (1912-1960) and Enoch William Alexander Reinhardt (1903-1978) also are counted in the list of the most eminent potters. The Reinhardts as they are colloquially called ran the pottery mutually in the 1930s, up until 1936 when Harvey opened his own shop, which he ran until he left to do war work during WW II. Enoch continued running the pottery until 1946.  Burlon Craig on a later date bought Harvey Reinhardt's house, kiln, and shop

Pottery as a vehicle for self-expression:

Among of all the hand crafts, Pottery is perhaps the most delicate and sensitive art. It is because of the very nature of this art that people have used it to let out their emotions. For example the expressions portrayed through, let’s say a face jug are a subtle representation of the potters’ feelings, mind set and sentiments. In the past people have been using pottery to address the masses and to describe their inner self by either explicitly writing scriptures on pottery or by designing pottery in such a way that it becomes a vehicle of link and communication with the outside world.

Thus in short Pottery is a fascinating art deserves all the more attention. The government and Private institutions therefore should come forward to further develop and promote this art. The art of pottery should not remain restricted to Catawba Valley rather should be converted into a globally recognized form of art and expression.