EXHIBITIONS

MARGUERITE WILDENHAIN

BIOGRAPHICAL TIMELINES

• 1896 Marguerite Friedlander born in Lyon, France on October 11

• 1914 Graduates from high school & begins art training at the School of Fine & Applied Arts in Berlin

• 1919 Enters Bauhaus Foundation program in Weimar

• 1922 Begins apprenticeship with Gerhard Marcks

• 1926 Becomes Head of ceramics program at Halle-Salle School of Fine and Applied Arts

• 1933 Sets up a pottery studio in Putten, Holland

• 1940 Arrives in New York City; later this year settles in Northern California

• 1942 Moves to Pond Farm and prepares the site with Jane and Gordon Herr

• 1949 Pond Farm summer school begins

• 1952 Black Mountain seminar & Alfred University workshop; Jane Herr's death

• 1962 Writes: "Pottery: Form and Expression"

• 1963 State Parks attempt to acquire Pond Farm; Wildenhain receives permission to remain at Pond Farm for life

• 1973 Writes: "The Invisible Core: A Potter's Life and Thoughts"

• 1974 Visits Gerhard Marcks in Cologne and travels to Middle East

• 1979 Writes: ". . .that We Look and See"

• 1980 Last summer school and last firing

• 1985 Marguerite Wildenhain dies at Pond Farm
  

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Bauhaus-trained master potter, Marguerite Wildenhain (1896-1985), was a remarkable and tenacious world-renown ceramic artist and teacher. Few have equaled Wildenhain's skill and reputation as a potter and teacher. Through her famous summer school in northern California, known as Pond Farm, Wildenhain firmly established standards for her students as she demonstrated her philosophy about the integration of life and work, honest expression and integrity of form. Wildenhain taught professional potters and countless college level ceramics professors and high school teachers, therefore her influence did not stop with her immediate students. Second, third and fourth generations of students are still being inspired by her methods and philosophy. These students claim to still hear her "tutoring" them to ground their lives in their craft and their craft in their lives.

Wildenhain had a powerful presence in mid-century ceramics in the United States, richly influencing ceramic form, techniques and ceramic education. Though she holds a unique place in history, the importance of her influence has been neglected, consequently her once influential role has been cast aside. Dr. Sessions' curatorial objective is to reinvigorate her continued presence in classrooms, studios, and aesthetics as witnessed in the lives and work of her students. The purpose of this exhibit is to reestablish the contributions of her as both an artist and teacher, and to investigate the "ripples" that Wildenhain initiated. Sessions states that, "Wildenhain had an intense relationship with her craft, an extreme clarity about life, a critical eye regarding form, and a deep and abiding relationship with her students. This show is tangible evidence of this tenet and provides affirmation of her lasting imprint on the ceramic world and her students."

This exhibition features a selection demonstrating the most important aspects of her production done at Pond Farm from the 1950s to her last firing in 1980. The Wildenhain artworks exhibited represent a deep and broad range, including seemingly humble and modest vessels, contrasted with elaborate figurative incised narratives, and pierced, relief tiles. There are fundamental forms, mostly utilitarian, that display designs and textures based on the natural environment. Her palette is earthy, and the background of the objects is often brown or rust; contrasting imagery is often black or beige. They feature either immaculate geometric designs or her celebrated organic abstractions based on patterns from natural objects, such as leaves and flowers that she picked up on her daily walks.

Objects designed with incised lines and colored patterns were a consistent part of her production beginning in the 1950s. Later, she made narrative pieces that include people, situations and experiences encountered at home and while traveling. Figures and textures emerge in blue, green, black, tan and sometimes orange. Because they are less well known, a special aspect of this exhibit is the Wildenhain tile collection-both solid (incised flat and relief) and pierced. The technical cogency of the broad planes of clay is a marvel and a testimony to her skill because tiles are notoriously hard to make successfully. The large narrative tiles are powerful examples of Wildenhain's ability to blend fabrication, design and message. Along with her flat tiles, unparalleled as successful engineering are Wildenhain's pierced and/or pieced tiles that usually feature figures in relief.

Wildenhain was not concerned with how critics felt about her work or how she fit into the grand scheme of things. She trusted that her ability with the material and forms would endure over time. She had to struggle to achieve her vision and she took great personal satisfaction in the effort, overcoming difficult situations time and time again, all the while becoming convinced of her purpose. The thousands of vessels Marguerite Wildenhain made at Pond Farm contain her soul, her aesthetic vision, her work ethic, her Bauhaus roots, and embody the core of her philosophy of life and teaching. Her teaching and example represent the integrity of a craftsman, the discipline of work and the mental exercise of creativity.

This exhibition provides a platform to review and reflect on the perpetual influence that a superb teacher can have on their students. These students have come together to illustrate the place that Wildenhain's pedagogy occupies in their lives as teachers and artists. Her impact can be readily seen in the technical ability shown in her students' work; it is demonstrated in their level of craftsmanship; and it can be heard in all of their personal comments. Her studio work and her students have influenced the world of ceramics education for more than 50 years, and her methodology and philosophy live on in the Pond Farmers. If Wildenhain hoped that her philosophy of life and teaching would endure over time in the hearts and skills of her students, that wish has come true.

Marguerite Wildenhain
Bauhaus Milk Pitcher, ca.1923
Ceramic
Collection of Forrest L. Merril

Marguerite Wildenhain
Royal Berlin Coffeepot, 1928-33
Porcelain
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Halle Ewer, 1928-33
Porcelain
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Dutch-era Oil Bottle, ca.1935
Stoneware
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Dutch-era Pot, ca.1935
Stoneware
Collection of Forrest L. Merril

MargueriteWildenhain
Pond Farm Vase, 1940
Stoneware
Courtesy of Contemporary
Crafts Gallery, Portland, OR,
gift of Winifred Newberry

Marguerite Wildenhain
Narrow Necked Bottle, ca. 1955
Stoneware
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Covered Cookie Jar, Mid 1950's
Stoneware
Courtesy of the Luther College
Fine Arts Collection

Marguerite Wildenhain
Vase, 1957
Stoneware
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Jar, 1958
Stoneware
Courtesy of the Nora Eccles Harrison
Museum of Art
Utah State University Logan, Utah

Marguerite Wildenhain
Vase, ca. 1960
Stoneware
Courtesy of the Luther College
Fine Arts Collection

Marguerite Wildenhain
Vase (Children and Kites), ca. 1965
Stoneware
Courtesy of the Luther College
Fine Arts Collection

Marguerite Wildenhain
Fisherman Vase, 1970
Stoneware
Courtesy of Ragnar Naess

Marguerite Wildenhain
Footed Face Bowl, Late 1970¹s
Stoneware
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Sculpture (Pensive Ecuadorian Woman), ca. 1970
Clay
Courtesy of the Luther College
Fine Arts Collection

Marguerite Wildenhain
Tile with Two Sheep, 1970¹s
Ceramic
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
2 Woman, Late 1970¹s
Ceramic
Collection of Caryn Fried and
Wayne Reynolds

Marguerite Wildenhain
Figure Bottle, Late 1970's
Stoneware
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Guatemalan Boy Playing the Flute,
Mid to Late 1970¹s
Ceramic
Collection of Forrest L. Merrill

Marguerite Wildenhain
Tile with Three Fishermen,
March 10th 1980
Ceramic
Collection of Forrest L. Merril
Possibly in last Wildenhain's firing