Bread and butter plate from the Salamina Service
Designer
Rockwell Kent
(American, 1882 - 1971)
Manufacturer
Vernon Kilns
(1931 - 1958)
Dateca. 1939
MediumGlazed earthenware
DimensionsOverall: 6 3/8 inches (16.21 cm)
Credit LineGift of Catherine L. Futter in honor of Sarah F. Rowland
Object number2013.34.2
MarkingsStamped on reverse with:
Salamina
Designed by
Rockwell Kent
Vernon Kilns
Made in U.S.A.
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionCircular ceramic plate with transfer-printed design of young woman seated in a rocky landscape, facing to her left. One of her knees is bent and her proper right elbow rests upon it with a gesture of her thumb pointing to her mouth. The other lower leg is resting on lichen-covered rocks. She wears a yellow shirt, light blue sash, pants and over-the-knee seal-skin boots; her hair is covered with a light blue scarf.Gallery LabelStories have decorated ceramics used for dining since ancient times. In 1939, the American painter and printmaker Rockwell Kent adapted woodcuts from his memoir of visits to Greenland to decorate a dinner service. Produced by Vernon Kilns of California, these vividly-colored and graphically bold designs convey the beauty of the Arctic landscape. The heroine of the book and the central figure of the service is Salamina, Kent's Inuit housekeeper (kifak). Along with her daughter, she shared Kent's small hut for the year he lived in a small Greenland fishing village.
Copyright© Plattsburgh State Art Museum, Rockwell Kent Gallery and Collection
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