Degree Programs

This course offers a thorough examination of techniques and materials, together with a historical overview, of European ceramics from the 15th to the 20th century. It includes a study of the tin glaze tradition, from its origins in ancient Persia and its spread from the Islamic world via Moorish Spain to the great maiolica centers of 16th-century Italy. Study of Renaissance and early modern lead-glazed earthenware and stoneware is followed by a consideration of the history of porcelain, from its origins in China and the Far East 47 to the heyday of its European development in the 18th-century factories of Meissen and Sèvres. The industrialization of ceramic pro­duction in the latter half of the 18th and 19th centuries is studied through the important examples of Wedgwood and Minton. The subsequent reaction to industrial production, as seen in the Arts and Crafts movement in England and America, is traced in the revival and persistence of studio traditions that continue to the present. Frequent trips to mu­seums and collections are planned. 3 credits. satisfies pre-1800 requirement