Linna Vogel von Fogelstein Irelan (, Vogel von Fogelstein; 1846–1935) was a German-born American potter and author. She was the first woman to work in pottery in
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
who only used California materials.
Early life
Linna Vogel von Fogelstein was born in 1846.
She was a daughter of Col. Guido Alexander Vogel von Fogelstein,
and a great-niece of
Otto von Bismarck
Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (; born ''Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck''; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as ...
. Her ancestors were among the founders of the
University of Leipzig
Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...
in the year 1550.
Career
On November 14, 1870, in
Leipzig
Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
, Germany, she married William Irelan, Jr., a mining and consulting engineer.
They had one son, Oscar.
They subsequently came to California, where William's parents had removed in the meantime, and William became here engaged in mining and scientific research. He also conducted a school in mining chemistry, metallurgy and kindred sciences.
She worked the clays of California and established the first art pottery, manufacturing the first wares of the kind west of
Ohio
Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
. She won gold medals in exhibitions under the name of the
Roblin Art Pottery and had an extensive knowledge of pottery wares and manufacture. She was acknowledged as a pioneer in this line of industrial art in the American west. Irelan had an inherited taste and talent for her work in pottery lines from a knowledge of the fact that her ancestors were the founders of the
Royal Meissen China Works of
Saxony
Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...
.
As an artist in oils and water colors, she attained distinction, receiving the highest awards at the California state and other state exhibitions for her still-life paintings. She was also the first to introduce the
leather plasticque or modeled leather which was favored in the European centers and in the United States.
Ireland's writings included a work on the use of clays and the manufacture of pottery in California, and she was a frequent contributor to many of the leading magazines upon the subject of her specialty. Her writings were not confined entirely to pottery, but also covered many scientific subjects, including a paper on the World's Geological Society and the Society of Natural and Applied Sciences of Europe.
Death
Linna Vogel Irelan died in 1935.
See also
*
Notable US studio potters
References
Attribution
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Irelan, Linna Vogel
1846 births
1935 deaths
Emigrants from the German Empire to the United States
German potters
Women potters
Artists from Leipzig
19th-century German non-fiction writers
19th-century German women writers