Press Release
For Immediate Release
August 1st, 2009
For more information contact Margaret Carney at 419-245-1356,
curator@lithophanemuseum.org or www.lithophanemuseum.org
Blair Museum Celebrates Founder’s 100th Anniversary with Ceramics Illuminated
The Blair Museum of Lithophanes in Toledo, Ohio, owns the world’s largest collection of this magical 19th century porcelain art form. The Museum was founded in the 1960s by Laurel Blair, Toledo area realtor. Exactly one hundred years after his birth on September 6, 1909, the Museum is hosting a world-class special exhibition titled Ceramics Illuminated and sponsoring a party. The exhibition opens during the birthday party on Sunday September 6th, 2-4 p.m., and will remain on view on weekends 1-4 p.m. through October 31st. Special tours can be arranged at other times by prior appointment. A small fee will be charged to view the special exhibition.
Ceramics have long been associated with fire, and fire gives light. The translucent quality of porcelain is well known and highly prized. So it is surprising that ceramic pieces made with illumination in mind are so rare. It is believed that this is the first formal exhibition presenting this topic.
Lithophanes are a prime example of illuminated ceramics – porcelain plaques that reveal images when back lit. But this exhibit is not about lithophanes. In a museum full of more than 2,350 lithophanes, this exhibit highlights other illuminated ceramics.
Visitors to the Blair Museum of Lithophanes will have the opportunity to view the rare treasures that were created when the best of the ceramics world interfaced with illumination. The illuminated ceramics may be lit internally or externally. They may be intended to provide light, like a lamp, or just give the illusion of illumination. Some pieces need a candle or a spot light to be fully appreciated. There are functional objects, sculpture, and wall pieces. Some pieces date more than two hundred years ago, and others were made in recent months. Some were created by anonymous potters, and others by well-known contemporary artists and factories. Some are fine art and others may fall into the realm of kitsch in the opinion of some viewers. All are associated with illumination.
Those who have previously visited the Blair Museum, may be surprised to see loans from museums such as the Museum of Modern Art included in this special exhibition. In fact the entire exhibition is full of surprises.
One might be surprised to see a oversized white porcelain firefly attempting to mate (unsuccessfully) with a light bulb. Titled Pursuit of Happiness, artist Linda Cordell created this all-white porcelain sculpture in 1999. At that time she was pairing insects and industrial objects while investigating unmet expectations and unexpected consequences. The light in the abdomen of the firefly flicks on and off. Not surprisingly, an astute collector in Philadelphia owns this piece.
In the exhibition, the oversized porcelain firefly is juxtaposed with a brightly glazed “lamp” created in 1965 by artist Ka-kwong Hui (born Hong Kong 1922-2003) who is best known for his collaborations with Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. It might take the viewer a minute or two to interpret the piece as reflecting the artist’s intent – a Chinese landscape, with mountains and valleys and streams. This rare monumental Pop Art sculpture initiates a conversation with the nearby Fulper Pottery figural lamps that were created during the 1920s in New Jersey. Both the masked figure, with her illuminated pantaloons, and the sublime seated lady with her hat by her side, are fun and may elicit a smile from the viewer.
The use of white porcelain is prevalent throughout the selected exhibition objects. Just like the lithophanes created in Europe in the 19th century, the best porcelain has translucency as one of its reliable characteristics. Translucent lithophanes have to be backlit to reveal their exquisite pictures, as does the Chinese dish dating from the Qing dynasty, made for the Imperial family, on loan from the Flint Institute of Art. It requires illumination to see the wonderful dragon and cloud motifs that decorate the piece. Similarly, the small porcelain Ice Mountain, created in 2009 by United Kingdom artist Margaret O’Rorke, is lit internally. Her choice of porcelain coupled with her choice of lighting, creates a mountain that exudes magical qualities when viewed alone or in groupings of up to 32 ice mountains of various sizes.
Artist Jack Earl sees the world through Ohio eyes and frequently references his Ohio existence. Ohio Dresser, created in 1976, overtly reflects Jack’s interest in “things Ohio” (which frequently turn out to be universal truths). Upon closer inspection, it becomes obvious that the dresser with a lamp, book, and other objects on top, is a mold-made covered box, made completely out of Kohler’s standard vitreous sanitary ware porcelain, covered with a white glaze. There were six editions with different arrangements of the objects placed on top. When the box lid is removed and replaced, it grinds like the back of your toilet tank porcelain when you remove the lid to jingle the innards. His studio remains in Ohio, and many may remember Jack Earl teaching at the Toledo Museum of Art’s School of Design from 1963 to 1972.
Other artists included in this special exhibition include Ted Randall, who was on the faculty of the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University for more than twenty years. His stoneware lantern included in this exhibition represents what he referred to as “sculpots” – his work in the 1980s that reflected a new “ceramic synthesis of sculpture and pottery.” This piece from a private collection in Corning, New York, has a decidedly Japanese flavor.
The artist Rudi Staffel’s name is synonymous with the idea of optimal porcelain translucency. His “light gatherers” are mesmerizing when spot lighted because the copper oxide wash results in a mysterious blue tone in his glaze.
Curt Benzle is the only artist in the exhibition who has actually created lithophanes. He has worked with translucent materials since the 1970s and met Mr. Blair decades ago. While non-lithophane, his intricately carved, illuminated wall sconces demonstrate his mastery of the elusive translucency of porcelain.
KleinReid is comprised of the duo James Klein and David Reid, gifted designers and ceramic artists who work in New York. Their white porcelain still life candelabra references illumination without the reality of heat and light. Possessing just one of their pieces is not enough. It could become an obsession.
While some of the work in the exhibition is hand built, thrown, mold made, or carved, the porcelain parts of the King Rat Chandelier by the Non Fiction Design Collective (Katie Parker, Guy Michael Davis, Rebecca Harvey, and Steven Thurston) is created using rapid prototyping methods. This may be the first chandelier the viewer has wanted to own that has porcelain rats hanging by their looped tails with red glass berries in their mouths.
In stark contrast to the functional pieces, the chandelier, sculpture, Pop Art work, and figural lamps, is the loan from the Museum of Modern Art -- a lamp created out of ceramic foam by Harry Allen in 1994. It was originally designed to be part of the Mutant Materials exhibition at MoMA. The ceramic foam was manufactured by Selee Corporation and was and is used in industrial filtering applications. The foam filters molten metals and light.
Each illuminated object, alone, is fascinating. And when they are gathered together to celebrate the marriage of ceramics and illumination, their cumulative effect is like shining a light on ceramic history.
In addition to the special exhibition of non-lithophane illuminated ceramics, there still remain approximately 750 19th century lithophanes on view in adjacent galleries.
On Sunday September 6th, between 2-4 p.m., there will be more than this special exhibition happening at the Blair Museum of Lithophanes. There will be a silent auction of a modern 6-sided lithophane lamp donated by the Porcelain Garden as well as two pieces from the special exhibition will be auctioned (the KleinReid candelabra and the Benzle wall sconce which were generously donated by the artists). A lithophane by David Failing, and a few other surprises will also be among the auction offerings. Additionally, a lithophane raffle will be held, with the prize being a photograph of your choosing, being made into a lithophane light by Light Affection in California. Light Affection is donating the gift certificate to make this possible.
Refreshments will be served and members of the Blair family will be present along with exhibition artists such as Jack Earl. Admission for the September 6th events is free to members, and $15 for other visitors.
The Blair Museum of Lithophanes, now owned by the City of Toledo, is located at Toledo Botanical Garden at 5403 Elmer Drive. It was first operated as a private Museum in Toledo’s Old West End historic neighborhood, opening more than 40 years ago, when Laurel G. Blair discovered the magic of lithophanes. Lithophanes are 3-dimensional porcelain pictures that show their true beauty when backlit. The first book on this topic in 180 years was written by the Museum’s curator, Dr. Margaret Carney, and published by Schiffer Publishing in 2008. It can be ordered through the Museum’s website or purchased at the Museum.
For more information phone 419-245-1356, email curator@lithophanemuseum.org or visit our website www.lithophanemuseum.org