Edith Heath
Tabletop Modernist
May 31, 2009 – October 4, 2009
Pasadena Museum of California Art
"This exhibition focuses on the life of Edith Heath and her defining influence on California design through pottery. Popular at dinner tables across the country and featured in many of the early American industrial design exhibitions, Heath Ceramics helped define mid-century modernism. Edith Heath began as a studio potter in San Francisco. She established Heath Ceramics in 1947 to meet the growing demand for her dinnerware and accessories. She focused on simple, minimalist style although her process was characterized by innovation and experimentation. Her use of unique glazes and clay underscored her belief that quality does not have to be sacrificed for mass production and accessibility. Her creations were also a reflection of the post-war attitudes toward a more relaxed American lifestyle, especially in California where indoor-outdoor living was taking root."
"Edith Heath (1911-2005) founded Heath Ceramics in the mid-forties when, following her one-woman show at San Francisco's Palace of the Legion of Honor, her pieces were picked up for sale at Gump’s of San Francisco. For the past half-century, Edith's life was dedicated to the craft of ceramics and the skill of the artisan. This passion, along with the legacy of her work in stoneware clay body and glaze development, gives Heath its unique place in ceramics today. As a result of Edith’s timeless and unique design sense - many of her pieces live in the permanent collections of museums such as the MOMA in New York City."
see more here.. about the upcoming exhibition.
go to heath here..