Luster Vessel

Luster Vessel
Beatrice Wood

Artist Biography
Acquisition Number: 2022.2
Medium: Earthenware, luster glaze
Size: 6 x 6 1/2 x 6 1/2 in.
Date: c. 1970
Credit: Purchased in memory of Scott L. Trenton

Wood is best known for her stunning vessels with their metallic luster glazes, and her works made her one of the most distinctive potters of her time. Her ceramics were loosely formed vessels reflective of her interest in Bohemian styles and folk art. She first became interested in luster glazes after purchasing a set of luster-glazed antique dessert plates that she wanted a matching teapot for. After settling in Ojai, California, in 1948, Wood began to develop her own version of the unpredictable luster glaze technique, embedding the metallic iridescence in the glaze itself, rather than painting it on. She created a unique palette in an extraordinary range of metallic pinks, golds, and greens. The luminous colors and surface qualities associated with lusterware glaze are created by specific reduction firing techniques where metallic pigments react with the clay body as the oxygen is absorbed. Inherently unpredictable, the Dadaist element of chance involved with lusterware glazing certainly appealed to Wood, who delighted at tossing other elements such as straw or mothballs into the kiln. In Ojai, where she lived until her death at age 105, Wood continually worked to enhance her lusterware techniques.