Robert Johnson collection of Frans Wildenhain ceramics
Scope and Contents
This is a collection of mid-twentieth century ceramics, circa 1940-1970, created by Frans Wildenhain (1905-1980). These were collected beginning in 1955 by Robert Johnson. The collection contains various types of pieces including bowls, pots, vases, tiles, jars, sculptures, and vessels.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1955-1975
Creator
- Johnson, Robert Bradley (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open to researchers.
Biographical Information: Frans Wildenhain and Robert Johnson
About Frans Wildenhain
German born potter Frans Wildenhain joined the faculty at the School for American Crafts in 1950 where, along with Hobart Cowles, he helped create the legendary ceramics program. Wildenhain was trained at the Bauhaus with such giants as Josef Albers, Paul Klee, and Lazlo Moholy-Nagy. In addition to more traditional forms of pottery, Wildenhain created large ceramic murals for display in public spaces, such as the wall in the lobby of RIT’s Ingle Auditorium.
About Robert Johnson
Robert Bradley Johnson graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic and moved to Rochester, New York in 1954 to work at Eastman Kodak. He purchased his first Wildenhain pieces from Shop One to furnish his new home, "...a couple of his lamps, a tea caddy, a few bowls, enough to fill all the corners."1 That was in 1955. Johnson continued collecting Wildenhain's work, and his collection eventually totaled some 331 pieces, 300 of which he donated to the RIT Art Collection in 2010.
1 "RIT Archives Acquires Frans Wildenhain Ceramic Collection," by Marcia Morphy. University News, August 17, 2010.
Extent
331 Item(s) (Bowls, Pots, Vases, Tiles, Jars, Sculptures, Vessels, etc.)
Language
English
Overview
Robert Johnson collection of Frans Wildenhain ceramics contains 331 pieces, each collected by Johnson.
Arrangement
Ceramic pieces are stored individually.
Physical Location
RIT Art Collection
Physical Location
C.S. North, Shelf 235
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Accession number(s):
10:67
Bob Johnson gifted his collection of Frans Wildenhain ceramics to the RIT Art Collection in July 2010.
Dimensions
Ceramic pieces vary in size: .5 x 8 to 43 x 16 inches
Processing Information
Finding aid created by Amy Vilz in August 2011.
Subject
- Rochester Institute of Technology -- Art collections (Organization)
- Rochester Institute of Technology -- Faculty (Organization)
- Rochester Institute of Technology. School for American Craftsmen (Organization)
- Shop One (Rochester, N.Y.) (Organization)
- Wildenhain, Frans (Person)
Genre / Form
Occupation
Topical
- Title
- Robert Johnson collection of Frans Wildenhain ceramics
- Status
- Published
- Subtitle
- RIT Art Collection
- Author
- Amy Vilz
- Date
- 26 August 2011
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the RIT Archives Repository
