Newcomb Pottery is considered one of the most significant collections of American art pottery of the 20th century, with each piece critically acclaimed and highly coveted. The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service has partnered with Newcomb Art Gallery at Tulane University in New Orleans to present the largest, most comprehensive Newcomb Pottery collection to tour the country in nearly three decades. “Women, Art and Social Change: The Newcomb Pottery Enterprise,” will be on display at the Georgia Museum of Art in Athens, Ga., May 17 through Aug. 31, before continuing on a seven-city national tour through 2016.
The exhibition, which initially debuted at Newcomb Art Gallery in 2013 in New Orleans, features more than 125 objects—the iconic pottery, including a daffodil motif vase by Harriet Joor, and lesser-known textiles, metalwork, jewelry, bookbinding and historical artifacts. Each piece is one of a kind—and collectively they create a distinctive southern art form. The exhibition offers new insights into the Newcomb community—the philosophy, the friendships, the craftsmanship and the women who made an enduring mark on American art and industry.
“The exhibition brings together a variety of objects created during the lifespan of the Newcomb enterprise,” said Sally Main, curator of the Newcomb Art Gallery. “The finest examples of the pottery art form will be displayed alongside pieces that will come as a revelation to many—not only a rich variety of crafts but also photos and artifacts that breathe life into the Newcomb legacy.”
Newcomb Pottery was established in 1895 as an educational experiment of H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, Tulane University’s former women’s college. The quasi-commercial venture offered an opportunity for Southern women to support themselves financially during and after their training as artists. The art school faculty incorporated the philosophies and tenets of the British Arts and Crafts movement into their curriculum, through a distinctly American southern prism, to teach women self-reliance by way of an education and gain financial independence through the sale of their wares. The Pottery thrived until 1940.
Inspired by the flora and fauna of the Gulf South, the pieces offer insight into the extraordinary women who made a lasting impression on American art and industry. Works from various periods examine the role that the enterprise played in promoting art for the betterment of women and, in turn, New Orleans’ business and cultural communities, still struggling from the effects of the Civil War.
The Newcomb program is a rich mine for academic research. “Women, Art and Social Change: The Newcomb Pottery Enterprise” showcases this striking collection with text that draws from new scholarship to explore the history of the Pottery and its importance as a social and artistic experiment.
Representing 45 years of achievement in decorative arts from 1895 to 1940, “Women, Art and Social Change: The Newcomb Pottery Enterprise” is supported by grants from the Henry Luce Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, Art Works, which were matched by supporters of Newcomb Art Gallery.
SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for 60 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. Exhibition descriptions and tour schedules are available at www.sites.si.edu.
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