Gustavsberg Porcelain Factory Värmdö, Sweden Jar with Cover 1899 Glazed porcelain Designed by Josef Ekberg 1877-1945 22-3/4 inches high, 13 inches in diameter Gift of the Decorative Arts Council and Daniel Morris and Denis Gallion, Historical Design Collection, New York 94.35a,b

Look

1. What kinds of lines dominate the design of this jar? Can you find repeated curving lines? In what way do the lines of the decoration correspond to the shape of the jar?
    
2. Do you think this jar was made (a) on a potter's wheel, (b) using the coil method, (c) with a mold, or (d) by the slab method? Explain your answer.
    
3. How do you think the decoration on this jar was applied? In which parts of the painted decoration does the ground or background show through? Can you point out the negative space in this piece? Describe the surface texture.
    
4. Is this jar symmetrical or asymmetrical? Explain your answer. If you could see the other side of this jar, what do you think you would see? Why do you say that?
    
5. Find at least five different PATTERNS on this jar. How are the patterns created?
    

Think

1. This jar was designed and painted by Josef Ekberg and made at a factory that employed nine hundred workers. Who would you consider the artist, the designer of the object or the factory worker(s) who made the jar, or both? Explain your answer.
    
2. This design is based on a flower native to Sweden. If you were to design a ceramic object in the Art Nouveau style, what plant or animal form would you base your design on? Why?
    
3. This design was influenced by Japanese prints that incorporated natural forms and landscapes What other object in this unit was inspired by Asian works of art?
    
4. Why would wealthy people want this object in their house? Do you have anything in your home that is purely decorative? How does it make you feel?
    
5. Do you think the design on this jar is NATURALISTIC or ABSTRACT? Why do you say that? In what ways has the artist attempted to imitate natural forms? In what ways has the artist abstracted or stylized the forms? How are the designs on this piece different from those on the Zsolnay vase? How are they the same?
    
6. What colors do you see? Why do you think the artist chose to use these colors? Would the jar look different if it had been decorated with many colors? How?
    

Key ideas.
Where does it come from?
What does it look like?
How was it used?
How was it made?
Discussion questions.
Additional resources.

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