Pewabic Pottery is a ceramic studio and school in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

. Founded in 1903, the studio is known for its iridescent glazes, some of which grace notable buildings such as the

Shedd Aquarium Shedd Aquarium (formally the John G. Shedd Aquarium) is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. Opened on May 30, 1930, the aquarium was for some time the largest indoor facility in the world. Today it holds about ...

and

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is a large minor Catholic basilica and national shrine in the United States in Washington, D.C., located at 400 Michigan Avenue Northeast, adjacent to Catholic University. ...

. The pottery continues in operation today, and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places liste ...

in 1991.

Origin and history

The pottery was founded in 1903 by the artist and teacher Mary Chase Perry Stratton and Horace James Caulkins, her business partner. Caulkins was considered a high-heat and

kiln A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects made from clay int ...

specialist, and developed the "Revelation kiln". Mary Perry Stratton was "the artistic and marketing force." The collaboration of two and their blend of art and technology gave the pottery its distinctive qualities as Detroit's contribution to the International Arts and Crafts movement and exemplified the American Craftsman Style. The word Pewabic is derived from the

Ojibwa The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

(or Chippewa) word "wabic", which means metal, or "bewabic", which means iron or steel, and specifically referring to the "Pewabic"

Upper Peninsula The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula by ...

copper mine where Ms. Stratton walked with her father. The company is well known for the unusual iridescent glaze covering the pottery and tiles created in a manner outlined by the International Arts and Crafts movement. In 1991, Pewabic Pottery was designated as a

(see also

List of National Historic Landmarks in Michigan The National Historic Landmarks in Michigan represent Michigan's history from pre-colonial days through World War II, and encompasses several landmarks detailing the state's automotive, maritime and mining industries. There are 43 National H ...

). As Michigan's only historic pottery, the center continues to operate in a 1907

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

building as a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

educational institution. They offer classes in

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

, hold exhibitions, sell pottery made in house, showcase and sell artists from across the United States, and offer

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design' ...

and fabrication services for public and private buildings.

Museum and galleries

The museum's exhibits focus on the company's role in the history of Detroit, the Arts and Crafts movement in America and the development of ceramic art in the country. The galleries also showcase new works by modern ceramic artists.

Famous works

Pewabic Pottery produces many kinds of hand made decorative objects. They are part of the collections of the

Detroit Institute of Arts The Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), located in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, has one of the largest and most significant art collections in the United States. With over 100 galleries, it covers with a major renovation and expansion project comple ...

, the

University of Michigan Museum of Art The University of Michigan Museum of Art in Ann Arbor, Michigan with is one of the largest university art museums in the United States. Built as a war memorial in 1909 for the university's fallen alumni from the Civil War, Alumni Memorial Hall ori ...

, and the

Freer Gallery of Art The Freer Gallery of Art is an art museum of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. focusing on Asian art. The Freer and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery together form the National Museum of Asian Art in the United States. The Freer and S ...

. Under Mary Stratton's artistic leadership, Pewabic Pottery employees created lamps, vessels, and architectural tiles. Architectural pieces have been a staple in Pewabic's history. They were known for their iridescent (like an oil slick with an incredible translucent quality and a phantasmagoric depth of color) glazes. Architectural tiles were used in churches, concert halls, fountains, libraries, museums, schools and public buildings. The studio's work graces numerous edifices throughout Michigan and the rest of the United States. Noteworthy examples include Herzstein Hall at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

, and the

in Chicago. Illinois. Detailed maps of public installations in the Detroit Metropolitan Area and the U.S.A. are available. ''See'' ''Architectural tile'' ''infra''. Particularly notable was the company's work at the

in Washington, D.C., consisting of arches outlined with iridescent Pewabic tile, huge ceramic medallions set in the ceiling, and fourteen Stations of the Cross for the crypt. Pewabic's design team continues to create ornate tile conceptions for public and private buildings. Contemporary installations include Comerica Park, home of the Detroit Tigers, Detroit Medical Center Children's Hospital, five Detroit People Mover stations, Third Man Records (Detroit), stations for the Q-Line, and the

Herald Square Herald Square is a major commercial intersection in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, formed by the intersection of Broadway, Sixth Avenue (officially Avenue of the Americas), and 34th Street. Named for the now-defunct ''New ...

in New York City.

Architectural tile

Detroit Public Library July 2018 17 (Pewabic fireplace)

Pewabic tile was (and continues to be) in great demand in Detroit and the southeastern Michigan area for the use in buildings and it can be found in many of the area's finest structures. These include: *

Belle Isle Aquarium The Belle Isle Aquarium is a public aquarium located in Belle Isle Park in Detroit, Michigan. Designed by noted architects George D. Mason and Albert Kahn, it opened on August 18, 1904, and was the oldest continually operating public aquarium in ...

Belle Isle Park Belle Isle Park, known simply as Belle Isle (), is a island park in Detroit, Michigan, developed in the late 19th century. It consists of Belle Isle, an island in the Detroit River, as well as several surrounding islets. The U.S.-Canada borde ...

, Michigan * Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Detroit, Michigan *

Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament The Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament is a Neo-Gothic style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States. It is the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit. The metropolitan archdiocese for the Roman C ...

, Detroit, Michigan *

Charles Lang Freer House The Charles Lang Freer House is located at 71 East Ferry Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, USA. The house was originally built for the industrialist and art collector Charles Lang Freer, whose gift of the Freer Gallery of Art began the Smithsonia ...

, 71 East Ferry Avenue (Current name: Palmer, Merrill, Institute of Human Development & Family Life) Detroit, Michigan * Christ Church, Cranbrook,

Bloomfield Hills Bloomfield Hills is a small city (5.04 sq. miles) in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a northern suburb of Metro Detroit and is approximately northwest of Downtown Detroit. Except a small southern border with the city of Bir ...

, Michigan *

Compuware Compuware Corporation was an American software company based in Detroit, Michigan. The company offers products aimed at the information technology (IT) departments of large businesses, and its services also include testing, development, automation ...

World Headquarters, Detroit, Michigan * Cowles House (a/k/a Alice B. Cowles house, formerly known as Faculty Row House Number 7 and presently the

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...

President's home),

East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...

Cranbrook Kingswood School (''In The Right Way Quickly'') , established = , closed = , type = Independent , religious_affiliation = Methodist , president = , head_label = Headmaste ...

, many facilities *

, Detroit, Michigan (loggia) *

Detroit People Mover The Detroit People Mover (DPM) is a elevated automated people mover system in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The system operates in a one-way loop on a single track encircling downtown Detroit, using Intermediate Capacity Transit System ...

many stations, Detroit, Michigan *

Detroit Public Library The Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in the U.S. state of Michigan by volumes held (after the University of Michigan Library) and the 21st-largest library system (and the fourth-largest public library system) in the U ...

Children's Room, Detroit, Michigan * Detroit Zoological Park,

Royal Oak, Michigan Royal Oak is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. An inner-ring suburb of Detroit, Royal Oak is about north of Detroit's city limits. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 57,236. Royal Oak is located along t ...

* Edward H. McNamara Terminal,

Northwest Airlines Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWA) was a major American airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines, Inc. by a merger. The merger, approved on October 29, 2008, made Delta the largest airline in the world until the American Airlines ...

, Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport,

Romulus, Michigan Romulus is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 23,989 at the 2010 census. Romulus is a western suburb of Metro Detroit and is also considered part of the Downriver collection of communities. It is most not ...

* English Inn (formerly Medovue Manor), Eaton Rapids, Michigan built in 1927 for

Oldsmobile Oldsmobile or formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it pro ...

President Irving Jacob Reuter * Father

Solanus Casey Solanus Casey, OFM Cap. (November 25, 1870 – July 31, 1957), born Bernard Francis Casey, was a priest of the Catholic Church in the United States and was a professed member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. He was known during his lifetim ...

Center, Detroit, Michigan *

Guardian Building The Guardian Building is a landmark skyscraper in the United States, located at 500 Griswold Street in Downtown Detroit, Michigan, within the Financial District. The Guardian is a class-A office building owned by Wayne County, Michigan and s ...

, Detroit, Michigan. * Harper House, 1408 Cambridge Drive,

Lansing, Michigan Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, makin ...

Hill Auditorium Hill Auditorium is the largest performance venue on the University of Michigan campus, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The auditorium was named in honor of Arthur Hill (1847-1909), who served as a regent of the university from 1901 to 1909. He bequeath ...

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

, Michigan * Kedzie North,

East Lansing East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...

, Michigan * Kirk in the Hills, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan * Lawrence Fisher Mansion, Detroit, Michigan * Mackenzie High School, 9275 Wyoming Avenue, Detroit, Michigan (Now at the landfill - demolished) * Maude Priest School, Detroit, Michigan * Michigan Historical Museum, Lansing, Michigan *

Michigan League Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

, Ann Arbor, Michigan * Michigan Union,

, Ann Arbor, Michigan * Michigan State University Memorial Chapel, East Lansing, Michigan * Michigan State University Union Women's Lounge (fireplace), East Lansing, Michigan * Morton High School,

Richmond, Indiana Richmond is a city in eastern Wayne County, Indiana. Bordering the state of Ohio, it is the county seat of Wayne County and is part of the Dayton, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 36,812. Situ ...

* National Theater, Monroe and Farmer, Detroit, Michigan (facade, 1911) * North Kedzie Hall,

* Oakland Family Services,

Pontiac, Michigan Pontiac ( ') is a city in and the county seat of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 61,606. A northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Pontiac is about northwest of Detroit. Found ...

Sacred Heart Major Seminary Sacred Heart Major Seminary is a private Roman Catholic seminary in Detroit, Michigan. It is affiliated with the Archdiocese of Detroit. In 2016–2017, 107 seminarians, representing eleven dioceses and two religious orders were enrolled in cl ...

, Detroit, Michigan * Scott Fountain,

, Detroit, Michigan, 1922 *

Shaw Hall Shaw Hall is a historic dormitory located on the campus of West Liberty University at West Liberty, Ohio County, West Virginia. It was built in 1919–1920, and is a three-story red brick building in the Classical Revival Neoclassical archit ...

, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan * Southfield Public Library, Southfield, Michigan * Stephen M. Ross School of Business,

, Ann Arbor, Michigan *

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

David Adamany Undergraduate Library, 5155 Gullen Mall Detroit, MI 48202-3962 *

Merrill Palmer Institute, Detroit, Michigan *

Old Main Old Main is a term often applied to the original building present on college or university campuses in the United States. The building serves today as home to administrative offices, such as the president or provost, but in its early inception may ...

, Previously, Detroit Central High School, 4841 Cass Detroit, MI 48201 * Women's City Club now Detroit Police Academy, Elizabeth and Park, Detroit, Michigan

References

Notes Sources * Barrie, Dennis; Jeanie Huntley Bentley; Cynthia Newman Helms; Mary Chris Rospond, ''Artists in Michigan: 1900-1976''. (Wayne State University Press, Detroit 1989). . * Brunk, Thomas W. "Ceramics in Michigan, 1886-1906" in ''The Arts and Crafts Movement in Michigan: 1886-1906''. (Detroit, The Pewabic Society, Inc., 1986). * Brunk, Colby, Jacobs et al., ''Arts and Crafts in Detroit 1906-1976: The Movement, The Society, The School''. (Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit MI 1976). * Brunk, Thomas W., with Introduction by Marilyn L. Wheaton,

Marshall Fredericks Marshall Maynard Fredericks (January 31, 1908 – April 4, 1998) was an American sculptor known for such works as '' Fountain of Eternal Life'', ''The Spirit of Detroit'', ''Man and the Expanding Universe Fountain'', and many others. Early life ...

Sculpture Museum Exhibition Catalog, June 1 through September 29, 2007, Essay on Pewabic Pottery. * Colby, Joy Hakanson, ''Art and a City: A History of the Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts''. (Wayne State University Press, Detroit MI, 1956). . * Fisher, Marcy Heller and illustrated by Marjorie Hecht Simon, ''Fired Magic: Detroit's Pewabic Pottery Treasure''. (Wayne State University Press, 2003). . * Gibson, Arthur Hopkin, ''Artists of Early Michigan: A Biographical Dictionary of Artists Native to or Active in Michigan, 1701-1900''. Wayne State University Press, Detroit, 1975. . * Hill, Eric J., and John Gallagher, ''AIA Detroit: The American Institute of Architects Guide to Architecture in Detroit''. (Wayne State University Press, Detroit, MI 2003). . * Karlson, Norman, ''The Encyclopedia of American Art Tiles, Volume 2, Region 3: Midwestern States''. (Schiffer Publishing Ltd., 2005). . * Pear, Lillian Myers, ''The Pewabic Pottery: A History of its Products and its People''. (Des Moines, Iowa, Wallace-Homestead: 1976). . * Rago, David, Suzanne Sliker, and David Rudd, ''The Arts & Crafts Collector's Guide''. (Salt Lake City, Utah, Gibbs Smith, 2005). . * Savage, Rebecca Binno and Greg Kowalski. ''Art Deco in Detroit (Images of America)''. (Arcadia, 2004). .

External links

Pewabic Pottery
- official site
Child's history of Pewabic Pottery and Mary Stratton--Michigan Historical MuseumPewabic page at ''Craft in America''

Marshall Fredericks Sculpture Museum Exhibition Catalog, June 1 through September 29, 2007, Essay on Pewabic Pottery, its importance, and the partnership between Caulkins and Stratton (Archive August, 2007)

Pewabic Pottery Virtual Tour
{{authority control Culture of Detroit Education in Detroit 1903 establishments in Michigan Arts and Crafts movement Art schools in Michigan National Historic Landmarks in Metro Detroit American pottery Art museums and galleries in Michigan Museums in Detroit National Register of Historic Places in Detroit Ceramics museums in the United States