Collecting, Culling and Curating

The green glaze of pottery is as varied as grass, water, emeralds, chameleons and acorn squash. That’s what makes collecting so much fun.

It was at a student sale that I bought my first piece of pottery in 1986. My mother-in-law worked at Richland College then and turned me on to the pop-up sale secreted away in the student union.

The work seemed remarkably fine, representing a small but talented group of potters who sat lined up at a table ready to wrap the purchases.

Inexpensive pieces ranged from about five to thirty five dollars for a small cup to a large vase. I made a point of shopping that pre-Christmas sale for many years, building up my collection.

From there, I hit the thrift stores with a mission: I became a green pottery go getter. Names like McCoy, Haeger and Treasure Craft replaced Chanel and St. John. I graduated to top-shelf studios like Weller, Roseville, Rookwood and Francoma. I discovered California Potteries. My shelves filled up.

Soon green pottery began to dominate my physical and mental surroundings. It would remain a passion and pastime for several decades.

Now I have so many beautiful pots I go through and pull the ones I don’t love any more and sometimes put them up for sale.

I think focusing on one particular thing like green pottery has brought a lot of joy to my love of thrift stores. The search is less random.