The Hudson Valley has been a meeting point of cultures and communities since long before the first European ship pushed its way north from what became New York Harbor. As a tidal river, it pulls and pushes with the moon, but moves more than water. flavors, tastes, and traditions mix in the waters of the Hudson, and was has been created from that soup is consistently inspiring.
Stoneware, especially salt-glazed stoneware, boomed in the early 19th century as functional storage crockery that could keep your butter, protect your vinegar, and look beautiful. The cobalt decorations were painted by traveling artists, each with their own special motifs and flourishes. Sherds (ceramic shards) can be found of this work along the banks of the Hudson still, and we gave friend's a local Athens, NY decorated jug as a wedding gift a few years back.
When the Thomas Cole Historic Site approached us about once again doing the centerpieces for their annual summer party, we took inspiration from the meeting point of this stoneware heritage, which blossomed locally just as Cole (1801-1848) was born in England, the cobalt decoration that makes traditional stoneware so distinctive, and the form that keeps it functional today — albeit with a twist.
There would not have been a real function for a trio of lugs (small handles) on tall stoneware jars two centuries ago, at least no one that we can think of, but we love that putting the three handles ties each piece back to it's origins while setting it apart. This is not antique stoneware, but our take on a timeless form.
Decorated to celebrate the 250th of the nation that welcomed Cole in and signed with his distinctive TC, we are thrilled to have a small collection of these vases on offer. They will not be remade, and each is one-of-one to fill with flowers from your garden or the shop down the road.
