What are we doing?
Project Description:
Northeast Georgia is home to a dying tradition of folk pottery, one that is nationally
recognized for it’s unique and historical importance, with a growing urban collectors'
market supporting this craft that once served the needs of Georgia's farming folk. Several
potting families in Appalachia passed down the knowledge they had acquired and the
style they had developed from generation to generation and experienced great success
supporting their families with this business. As glass bottles and tin cans became
commonplace, the demand for ceramic vessels diminished, and most potters were forced
to find other ways to make a living. Those who continued to make ceramic wares found
success in selling more decorative wares, rather than purely utilitarian vessels. Their
style, and in some cases their working methods, evolved in response to economic
necessity. Still, their forms are recognizable as belonging to their particular family’s
traditional style.
As academically trained artists or art students in northeast Georgia today, we generally
strive for our work to be unique and personally expressive. The individual voice replaces
the family or clan identity. Innovation trumps tradition. With an opportunity provided by
the Faculty-Undergraduate Summer Engagement, we would like to research traditional
folk pottery of northeast Georgia and respond to it visually using the same materials and
methods of our predecessors, but employing our contemporary styles and viewpoints.
Of particular interest to us is that both Abigail and I are descendants of potters. My
parents are first generation potters, and Abigail descends from the Meaders family, who
first established a pottery in Mossy Creek, Georgia in 1892, and has been making pots in
the folk tradition for four generations. The fact that both of us sought academic
schooling rather than apprenticing with our families reveals a change in ceramic culture.
Some of the goals and the expected products of our work are as follows:
1. Research and document traditional folk pottery significant to North Georgia.
Research will include visiting the Meaders’ Folk Pottery in White County, Ga,
Hewell’s Pottery of Gillsville, Ga, and the Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast
Georgia to provide a historical basis for inquiry.
2. Collaborate in the studio to produce a body of contemporary ceramic works in
response to our research of traditional folk pottery forms and working methods.
3. Research and formulate a palette of glaze colors and textures that complement our
contemporary forms.
4. Exhibit our collaborative works alongside historical examples of Georgia folk
pottery.
Northeast Georgia is home to a dying tradition of folk pottery, one that is nationally
recognized for it’s unique and historical importance, with a growing urban collectors'
market supporting this craft that once served the needs of Georgia's farming folk. Several
potting families in Appalachia passed down the knowledge they had acquired and the
style they had developed from generation to generation and experienced great success
supporting their families with this business. As glass bottles and tin cans became
commonplace, the demand for ceramic vessels diminished, and most potters were forced
to find other ways to make a living. Those who continued to make ceramic wares found
success in selling more decorative wares, rather than purely utilitarian vessels. Their
style, and in some cases their working methods, evolved in response to economic
necessity. Still, their forms are recognizable as belonging to their particular family’s
traditional style.
As academically trained artists or art students in northeast Georgia today, we generally
strive for our work to be unique and personally expressive. The individual voice replaces
the family or clan identity. Innovation trumps tradition. With an opportunity provided by
the Faculty-Undergraduate Summer Engagement, we would like to research traditional
folk pottery of northeast Georgia and respond to it visually using the same materials and
methods of our predecessors, but employing our contemporary styles and viewpoints.
Of particular interest to us is that both Abigail and I are descendants of potters. My
parents are first generation potters, and Abigail descends from the Meaders family, who
first established a pottery in Mossy Creek, Georgia in 1892, and has been making pots in
the folk tradition for four generations. The fact that both of us sought academic
schooling rather than apprenticing with our families reveals a change in ceramic culture.
Some of the goals and the expected products of our work are as follows:
1. Research and document traditional folk pottery significant to North Georgia.
Research will include visiting the Meaders’ Folk Pottery in White County, Ga,
Hewell’s Pottery of Gillsville, Ga, and the Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast
Georgia to provide a historical basis for inquiry.
2. Collaborate in the studio to produce a body of contemporary ceramic works in
response to our research of traditional folk pottery forms and working methods.
3. Research and formulate a palette of glaze colors and textures that complement our
contemporary forms.
4. Exhibit our collaborative works alongside historical examples of Georgia folk
pottery.
Why is Georgia such a significant place for folk pottery?
The Georgia Piedmont
Our area of interest is the Northeast region of Georgia in the piedmont (gray shaded area). Rich clay deposits are concentrated along the fall line that cuts across the middle of the state. Two of the families that we studied, the Meaderses of Mossy Creek and the Hewells of Gillsville, are located within this region.
Our area of interest is the Northeast region of Georgia in the piedmont (gray shaded area). Rich clay deposits are concentrated along the fall line that cuts across the middle of the state. Two of the families that we studied, the Meaderses of Mossy Creek and the Hewells of Gillsville, are located within this region.
Where did our research take us?
We did research in the library as well as in the field. We immersed ourselves in as much literature, images of folk pottery, and actual pots as we could find. We conducted interviews with David Meaders, a fourth generation folk potter, and Rick Berman, a potter and ceramic historian. An excellent resource proved to be the Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast Georgia, located in Sautee Nacoochee, Georgia.
Visual Resources
Text Resources
Burrison, John. Brothers in Clay: The Story of Georgia Folk Pottery. Athens: The University of Georgia Press, 1983. Print.
ibid. From Mud to Jug. Athens: The University of Georgia Press, 2010. Print.
ibid. "Georgia Jug Makers: A History of Southern Folk Pottery". Diss. University of Pennsylvania, 1973. Print.
Guilland, Harold. Early American Folk Pottery. Philadelphia: Chilton Book Company, 1971. Print.
Loggins, Doug, dir. Clay in the Blood. Eyeball Productions, 1996. Videocassette.
Sweezy, Nancy. Raised in Clay, The Southern Pottery Tradition. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1994. Print.
Zug III, Charles G. Turners and Burners. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1986. Print.
ibid. From Mud to Jug. Athens: The University of Georgia Press, 2010. Print.
ibid. "Georgia Jug Makers: A History of Southern Folk Pottery". Diss. University of Pennsylvania, 1973. Print.
Guilland, Harold. Early American Folk Pottery. Philadelphia: Chilton Book Company, 1971. Print.
Loggins, Doug, dir. Clay in the Blood. Eyeball Productions, 1996. Videocassette.
Sweezy, Nancy. Raised in Clay, The Southern Pottery Tradition. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1994. Print.
Zug III, Charles G. Turners and Burners. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1986. Print.
Glaze Research
Black Glossy ^6 Ox.
Alberta slip 73
Frit 3134 20
Zircopax 4
Mason 6600 3
Alberta Slip Base Glaze ^6 Ox.
Alberta slip 80
Frit 3134 20
Try iron 1, 2 %
rutile 2, 3, 4, 5 %
tin
titanium dioxide
Oatmeal
Alberta slip 80
Frit 3134 20
Rutile 5
Titanium 3
Alberta slip 73
Frit 3134 20
Zircopax 4
Mason 6600 3
Alberta Slip Base Glaze ^6 Ox.
Alberta slip 80
Frit 3134 20
Try iron 1, 2 %
rutile 2, 3, 4, 5 %
tin
titanium dioxide
Oatmeal
Alberta slip 80
Frit 3134 20
Rutile 5
Titanium 3