COLONIAL ROOM

Abstract

The George G. Booth Loan Collection contains four choice examples of pottery made by Professor Charles F. Binns, of Alfred, New York, whose stoneware is regarded as superior to anything produced in America and is comparable to the best periods of the artist potters of Europe. It is particularly distinguished by the interesting surface texture and the refined quality of its low toned glazes, in which neutral gray greens and rich blue blacks predominate. The production of stoneware was begun in Flanders in the 16th century, and towards the end of the 19th century some artist potters in France took up the development of the ware, naming it Grès. The original glazing by salt was not entirely abandoned but was supplemented by colored and matt glazes. Stoneware clays are more elemental than those used for porcelain. The raw material is not purified and only the ordinary manipulations are employed in mixing. Thus stoneware possesses the masculine characteristics, strength and virility, while porcelain displays those of the feminine delicacy and grace. Stoneware and porcelain are produced by the same essential processes; the ware is once-fired, that is, both body and glaze are matured at one time and the same burning, the temperature from 1350 to 1400 degrees Centigrade. Professor Charles F. Binns, Director of the New York State School of Clayworking and Ceramics, at Alfred, New York, began the study of this type of ware about 1903, as a matter of personal interest. Every piece is made and finished throughout by Professor Binns himself, and none is duplicated.