This comprehensive book is both a biographical exploration of the early life of Mary Seton Watts and a survey of the pottery she designed. Her roots in Scotland, her artistic career and her marriage to the Victorian artist George Frederic Watts all influenced the design of the Grade 1 listed Cemetery Chapel at Compton and the art potteries which she then set up, both in Compton (The Potters' Arts Guild) and in her home village near Inverness. The pottery at Compton was in business for more than fifty years, making terracotta garden ware, memorials and small decorative pieces. It remained open through two World Wars and a trade depression. This highly illustrated publication showcases the beautiful and individual pieces of pottery and is a fitting tribute to the ability of Mary Watts to coordinate both people and resources.

In this publication the sinologist Rupprecht Mayer presents 143 Chinese reverse glass paintings from a private collection in southern Germany. Traditional motifs of happiness, scenes from plays and novels, landscapes, Chi na's entrance into modernity, and the changing image of the Chinese woman define the central motifs. Production of reverse glass paintings began in Canton in the 18th century, of which only those that found their way to the West are known today. After th e end of exports in the middle of the 19th century this decorative art continued to enjoy popularity in China, but only very few of the many fragile paintings in Chinese households have survived the turmoil of wars and disruptions of the 19th and 20th cent uries. Reverse glass painting fell into oblivion in China, with no collections in museums and very few private collectors. This first study in the West presents the beauty of this traditional art in all of its facets.

This book presents the surprising collection of Venetian glass donated by spouses Carla Nasci and Ferruccio Franzoia to the Carlo Rizzarda Modern Art Gallery in Feltre. A collection of over 800 pieces ranging from the 18th century to today, allowing the viewer to marvel, in particular, at the Murano production and its great glassmakers. A first nucleus includes the elegant Liberty and Deco glasses produced by Vetri Soffiati Muranesi Cappellin Venini & C. in the twenties: the artistic director of the company was Vittorio Zecchin, one of the most fascinating personalities working in Venice between the First World War and the decade later, who with his elegant, transparent blown glass inspired by the Renaissance, marked a decisive turning point in contemporary Murano production. A second group is represented by the artifacts produced between 1925 and 1960 referable to the figure of Carlo Scarpa, creator of highly successful, innovative glass shapes and fabrics, who collaborated respectively with the Cappellini company since 1926 and with Venini since 1932, together with a mix of products from other companies and authors active in the lagoon. The third type of documented artifacts is that of table glasses: consumer objects destined for ephemeral use and therefore an important testimony of taste and customs.

An original and entertaining catalogue for a travelling exhibition that has already been much talked about. The expressive power of glass emerges from the pages of the Glasstrees catalogue, which travelled from the Venice Biennale to the Museum of Art and Design of New York in February 2012. The excellent colour photographs illustrate the glass sculptures and installations by internationally-acclaimed artists and designers, some of the most important on the international scene, who for the occasion tackled one of the arts to have made Venice famous throughout the world. This catalogue will become a "must" for collectors, designers, students and connoisseurs.

The fragile beauty of glass has ensured its popularity through the ages in forms ranging from simple beakers to ornate decorative masterpieces. This beautifully illustrated book traces the story of glass from its origins in Mesopotamia some 5000 years ago, to the creation of the elegant vessels of the Islamic Near East, the superb mastery of Renaissance Venice and the creation of modern glassware for daily use.

A major new history of craft that spans three centuries of making and thinking in Aotearoa New Zealand and the wider Moana (Pacific). Paying attention to Pakeha (European New Zealanders), Maori, and island nations of the wider Moana, and old and new migrant makers and their works, this book is a history of craft understood as an idea that shifts and changes over time. At the heart of this book lie the relationships between Pakeha, Maori and wider Moana artistic practices that, at different times and for different reasons, have been described by the term craft. It tells the previously untold story of craft in Aotearoa New Zealand, so that the connections, as well as the differences and tensions, can be identified and explored. This book proposes a new idea of craft--one that acknowledges Pakeha, Maori and wider Moana histories of making, as well as diverse community perspectives towards objects and their uses and meanings.

The Ruskin Pottery operated from around 1898 to 1935. Founded by William Howson Taylor and his father Edward (Superintendent of the Birmingham School of Art) the pottery used simple forms and new glaze technologies in contrast to highly decorated majolica and earthenware that had been popular in the second half of the nineteenth century. The Ruskin Pottery was one of the most important potteries of the Arts and Crafts Movement, and William Howson Taylor was pre-eminent among a group of 'chemist potters' at the start of the twentieth century. The most important glaze effect was the reduction of copper and iron oxides during firing, to produce rich red, blue, lavender and green hues. This technique was also called 'high-fired' ware and the red glaze, 'sang de boeuf'. The Chinese had used reduction firing in previous centuries, but it fell out of use and was re-introduced by several European ceramicists during the late nineteenth century. William Howson Taylor became the greatest exponent of the technique, and won major awards at successive International Exhibitions, the first being at St Louis in 1904. This initiated an important export business to the USA, with stores that retailed his wares including Tiffany's. The pottery closed in 1933 with some pots being fired until final closure in 1935. William Howson Taylor, then ill, burnt all the glaze recipes and died soon after.

"Hooray for clay! Projects that put clay and ceramics centre stage are invaluable - be it in architecture, public sculpture, cups and saucers on your breakfast table, passing on an understanding of the material is invaluable. Clayground Collective are true clay ambassadors. Their extraordinary work is exemplary."--Kate Malone, Ceramic Artist; Judge, BBCTV Great Pottery Throw Down *** "This is not a "how to" book but a "Can you?" book. There is a real passion to discover though materials. This book challenges those with specialist skills to engage the public in that discovery and provides a route to get started."--Amanda Bright, Head of School of Art, U. of Brighton *** "If you're a practitioner setting out to work with schools and the public where do you go for advice? Clay in Common is a great starting point."--Steve Moffitt, Chief Executive, A New Direction *** As clay and ceramic courses decline in schools, craft and hand skills risk being lost. Clay in Common makes a strong case for the vital role of clay in schools and wider society. For teachers, parents, school governors, artist-facilitators and education policy-makers, the book has detailed case studies with ideas for projects and activities that can bridge school and community life. [Subject: Art Studies, Education]