On View
On viewObject number2007.38
Egyptian Blue Jazz Bowl with Flared Rim
Artist
Viktor Schreckengost
(American, 1906-2008)
Date1931
Mediumglazed earthenware with engobe, sgraffito design
DimensionsOverall: 9 × 17 × 17 in. (22.9 × 43.2 × 43.2 cm)
Credit LinePurchase made possible by Ronda Stryker and William Johnston
Exhibition HistoryA traveling Art Deco International exhibition of 2003-5, originating at London's Victoria and Albert Museum and closing at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts.
"Lasting Legacy: A Collection for Kalamazoo," Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, Kalamazoo, Michigan (Sep. 6, 2014 - Jan. 4, 2015).
"Unveiling American Genius," KIA Permanent Collection Exhibition, Traditional, Markin, Nay and Groos Galleries (March 1, 2021 - December 31, 2023).Label TextWhat is the purpose of this large bowl? The designs provide some clues—the cocktail glasses, liquor bottles, bubbles—a punch bowl!
In 1931, Viktor Schreckengost, a young artist at Cowan Pottery in Ohio, was asked to design a punch bowl. Inspired by a recent trip to New York, he created a bowl featuring stylized, geometric Art Deco designs and a striking blue glaze. Upon completion, the artist learned Eleanor Roosevelt had ordered the bowl to celebrate her husband’s election as governor of New York. Following that success, Schreckengost designed a second version with a flared rim and four more Jazz Bowls with the unique blue glaze were produced. The KIA’s bowl is one of those four with the flared rim.
Viktor Schreckengost went on to become one of the foremost figures in 20th-century industrial design. The Jazz Bowl is still considered his best ceramic work.
