hairstyles wallpapers: Artus Van Briggle

A talented potter, who I share an affinity of name, experienced a short but very successful life. I wish he left behind more examples of what he was capable of as well as his take on the changing styles through time. We know him for his creation of rare designs and the unusually soft satiny dull matte glaze he worked so hard to get just right.

Born in Felicity, Ohio in 1869 Artus Van Briggle showed an unusual artistic talent as a small child. By the age of 17, he boarded a steamboat and headed for Cincinnati to paint the faces of dolls for Arnold Fairyland Doll Store. Soon after, he apprenticed at the Avon Pottery Company and then moved to a position of decorator at the Rookwood Pottery Company. Mrs. Storer, the founder of Rockwood, recognized his superior talent and arranged to have him study in Paris. In 1893, the slender, auburn-haired and freckled-faced young man said goodbye to his family and friends and left to attend the Julian School of Art. While in Paris he saw examples of Chinese Ming pottery and was memorized by the glaze. From this moment on, he was determined to find a way to recreate this velvety matte finish. He also was highly influenced by the newly emerging Art Nouveau style which was apparent in the designs he was later to create. While in Paris, he met and fell in love with a fellow American student, Anne Lawrence Gregory. They became engaged with plans to marry, but the wedding was postponed.

Upon his return in 1896, he was granted the position of head decorator for Rookwood. In the evenings, he experimented with what he saw in France. The Art Nouveau style in pottery was a new departure in art pottery. It employed solid glazes and with a wider range of colors. Artus worked with low relief designs in the clay, experimented green, orange, purple and azure blue pigments, and continued to work on creating a formula for his glaze. His time fully occupied, he was driven and he was taxed. Constantly working with little sleep, he feel victim to tuberculosis.

At the turn of the century, many people were packing up and heading for Colorado Springs in search of dry air and sunshiny days. On the advice of a friend, he moved there in March of 1899. Before he left, Artus believed that he had finally discovered the secret formula the Chinese had use centuries before. He wrote it down, sealed it up and bequeathed to the Rookwood Pottery. This was not to be opened except in the case of his death. On a ranch southwest of Colorado Springs, he recuperated. As he gained strength, his indomitable desire drove him back to the potter’s wheel.

Lorelei Vase shows the Art Nouveau influence he was exposed to in Paris.

Artus met Professor William H. Strieby, a scientist and head of the department of Chemistry of Colorado College, who gave him advice about his glaze and offered him a corner of his laboratory. Artus was more determined to perfect his glaze working with the rich Colorado clay.

Although Anne Lawrence Gregory moved back to the states the same time as Artus, she remained in Pennsylvania. Something changed, still engaged, she packed up and moved to Colorado Springs in 1900. She taught art at Colorado Springs High School and worked closely with Artus in his studio. By December 1901 they had collaborated creating 300 pieces of pottery all of which sold at a Christmas sale. Anne became a working partner producing many of the early pieces bringing some of the highest prices on the market today. Anne and Artus collaborated to create their logo of the conjoined double A enclosed in a square. Artus was confident now and believed in the allure of his matte glaze.

In the spring of 1902, supported by leading business men of Colorado Springs, Artus formed Van Briggle Pottery Stock Company. In June of the same year Anne and Artus invited a few of their friends together, went to a spot on the Mesa of Cheyenne Mountain, stood in the shadow of a tree and exchanged vows. 1902 was a good year; Van Briggle pottery was also receiving national attention for the designs and the alluring glaze.

Rago, March 8, 2008: Poppies and pods with matte burgandy glaze, 1902.

At the height of success with his pottery and his working collaboration with his new wife, Artus fell ill again in 1904 and died at the young age of 35. Success did swell his head, his co-workers and peers said he always maintained a balanced modesty. Anne carried on winning numerous exhibition awards throughout the country. In 1906-1907, Anne received the highest award given by the Boston Arts and Crafts Societies – the Degree of Master. She wanted to construct a new building in his memory. In 1907, she hired her friend Dutch architect Nicholas Van den Arend who created a structure out of brick styles after a Dutch farmhouse. The building was completed the following year. Anne and her assistants created al the tiles and terra cotta elements that adorned the building. After the death of Anne, the pottery changed hands again and again. Something along the way was lost, I feel. The interesting array of calm colors and the velvety finish still remain, but the spirit and sense of freedom gone.