by Louise Irvine Exotic creatures of the deep exerted a powerful fascination for glass artists during the Art Nouveau era. Shimmering shoals of fish in iridescent colors appealed particularly to René Lalique in the early 1900s. The public were receptive customers, eager to romanticize the natural world as an escape

by Louise Irvine Peacocks, exotic birds of paradise and imperial Chinese dragons soar through fiery red skies in our Innovations gallery. This iconic Sung peacock jardiniere has flown from England via Australia to Arizona before landing here in Florida. We are forever indebted to the late Dave Bearman for creating

by Louise Irvine Chihuly’s deep ties to the ocean in the Pacific Northwest have inspired his Seaforms, which are often reminiscent of the radial patterns on shells and sea urchins. Some of his undulating forms suggest translucent jellyfish with floating tendrils. However, his Seaforms evoke the ebb and flow of

by Louise Irvine The Ardmore artists in KwaZulu Natal are known as the Isigwili, the fortunate ones. They enjoy a higher standard of living than their neighbors in this remote region of South Africa thanks to their work at the ceramic art studio. The Ardmore studio employs around 60 sculptors

by Louise Irvine Our Innovations gallery has a new exhibit of Royal Doulton’s Chang ware and returning visitors are all fired up by this dramatic glaze effect, which is reminiscent of an erupting volcano. The thickly textured crackle glazes were developed by Charles J. Noke as part of his experimentation

David Burnham Smith (1937-2019) by Louise Irvine “A mask tells us more than a face” according to Oscar Wilde and in this spirit, we are exploring the work of David Burnham Smith, and paying tribute to this brilliant British ceramic artist who died last year. David was always fascinated with

Chelsea Rousso’s wearable glass art is one of the museum’s main attractions in the Carnival & Cabaret exhibit and many fans have created their own works of art at her creative glass classes. However, few realize that Chelsea enjoyed a hugely successful career as a fashion designer in New York,

By Louise Irvine During Esther Underhay’s Elegant Harp recital at WMODA, her husband, Paul, challenged us to spot the harp in the Art Nouveau gallery. First, I pointed out Arion on a Seahorse but later realized that he is carrying a lyre, which is different. Then I noticed that the

by Louise Irvine Magnificent wild beasts tamed by Zulu riders take us on a journey of exploration through Africa’s diverse continent. The Travelers of Africa collection at WMODA was first developed by Ardmore in 2010 when South Africa hosted the World Cup Soccer and sports fans traveled to the continent

The Great Stink to the Great Smog by Louise Irvine The current pandemic prompted me to look back through the archives to see how a pioneering Victorian potter responded to an earlier public health crisis. For centuries, fighting disease meant battling foul smells as the miasma theory was widely held.