Early Twentieth Century Vase

Fritz Albert, VASE. Made by Teco Pottery, Terra Cotta, Illinois, Matte glazed terracotta c. 1910.

This vase is a rare and outstanding example of American art pottery from the first years of the twentieth century. As an early advertisement boasted, “Teco Pottery is the pottery of restful, peaceful green, and is remarkable for its purity of line and newness of design.”
The vase’s monumental form tapers into a swirl of leaves at the base, and is enhanced by the company’s characteristic soft matte glaze in a mossy green, with gunmetal (or charcoal) highlights. Measuring 18 inches tall and originally priced at $15.00, the vase is really a functional sculpture that epitomizes the arts and crafts ideal espoused by the movement’s leader, William Morris: “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”
Marianne Lamonaca
Associate Director for Curatorial Affairs and Education/Chief Curator
The Wolfsonian—Florida International University Museum, Miami Beach