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Founded in 1880 by Maria Longworth Nichols, Rookwood pottery is a favorite of collectors for the quality of its pieces, which were hand-decorated by a diverse group of artists (though some simpler pieces were mass-produced, especially during the Depression).
Rookwood pieces were sold at the factory showroom and at jewelry and department stores nationwide. Drawing from European and Asian styles, the company was very involved with the Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau movements, and its pieces are still prized as some of the best examples of those styles.
In addition to its signature vases, Rookwood also produced architectural tile and smaller items such as bookends, paperweights and figurines. There were between 20 and 25 artists...
Rookwood’s artists were innovative and helped change the way art pottery was created and designed. Kataro Shirayamadani covered the entire piece with decoration versus just the front as was previously done, and Laura Fry created the atomizer, allowing artists to evenly apply glazes and use color gradations. In the early 1900s, Rookwood began using matte finishes and vellum glaze, a translucent matte glaze.
Collectors should note that the vast majority of Rookwood pieces are very clearly marked. Very early pieces say “Rookwood,” and later pieces (starting in the mid-1880s) feature the Rookwood logo: a backwards R and P side-by-side. Rookwood closed its factory in the 1960s, but the copyright has been continuously enforced.
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Interviews & Articles
Riley Humler Explains the Importance of Rookwood Art Pottery
I don’t remember the first Rookwood piece I ever bought, that’s getting close to 40 years ago. But I must have liked it, because I… [more]
Rookwood, Pioneer American Art Pottery
The Rookwood Pottery has gone to war. This pioneer among American art potteries, founded by Maria Longworth Storer of Cincinnati, … [more]
Stuart Lonsdale Explains the History and Design of Gouda Pottery
I think it all started with a small pottery vase my mother obtained from the art pottery shop where she worked in the early 1920s … [more]
The Artisans and Designers Responsible for Roycroft Metalwork
I started collecting Roycroft around 1992 when I visited the Peter Roberts Gallery in New York City. That was sort of the peak of … [more]
The Kalo Shop, a Mecca for Arts and Crafts Sterling Silver
How did I get started collecting Arts and Crafts silver? My wife and I had been collecting Arts and Crafts items as far back as I … [more]
Cowan Art Pottery of the Art Deco Era
I’m the curator here at the museum in Rocky River, a suburb west of Cleveland. I look at Cowan pottery from a historian’s angle be… [more]
Bowes Curator Howard Coutts on Meissen, Staffordshire, and Sèvres
I’m the curator of the ceramics bit of the Bowes Museum. It’s a big museum with 30 galleries of which three or four are devoted to… [more]
Elyse Karlin on the Beautifully Unrefined Origins of Arts & Crafts Jewelry
I started collecting jewelry when I was about 13 years old. I was very close to an interior designer who took me to antiques shops… [more]
Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)
Gouda Design
Stuart Lonsdale and Kim Lindley's excellent tribute to and reference on Gouda Dutch Art Pottery and Delftware. The … [read review or visit site]
Cowan Pottery Museum Associates
Dedicated to raising awareness of the ceramic art work of R. Guy Cowan and his Cowan Pottery Studio in northeastern… [read review or visit site]
Modernism
An overview by the Minneapolis Institute of Arts of the design movements between 1880 and 1940 that comprised Moder… [read review or visit site]
The Pottery Studio
This 7,000-plus page site lives up to its self-billing as a 'knowledge base' with examples of work from all major a… [read review or visit site]
Chicago Silver
Paul Somerson's incredible reference on handwrought metalwork from the American Arts and Crafts movement of the ear… [read review or visit site]
1910 Metal
A detailed tribute to the lesser-known artistic metalwork craftsmen of the Arts and Crafts movement. In addition t… [read review or visit site]
Clubs & Associations: Art Pottery
Discussion Forums: Art Pottery
Other Great Reference Sites: Art Pottery
Top eBay Auctions
Rookwood Good Size (9 3/4") Matt Green Vase Arts And Crafts C.1912
Rookwood Art Pottery Vase, Matte Green Glaze, Perfect Xxii (1922)
Vintage Pair Of Rookwood Owl Bookends, W/ William Mcdonald Monogram, 1934, Rare
Gorgeous Rookwood Bamboo Pottery Vase 1925 Production #1895 Excellent Condition!
Vintage Rookwood Art Pottery Bunny Rabbit Figure-figural Paperweight #6166 Or60
Rookwood Vellum Blue And Floral 925e Elizabeth (lizzy) N Lincoln Vase 1907 7"
Rookwood Rook Crow Raven Bookend Pair 1922 #2275
Rookwood # 587b Incised Tankard Mug - 1906 - Matte Red- Excellent
1923 Rookwood Vase - Tall Vase W/ Deep Red Coloring
Rookwood Rare Early American Art Pottery Vase
Rookwood Tea Tile - Dutch Woman - Matte Glaze - 1930
Rookwood Flower Holder - Three Horses - William Purcell Mcdonald
Rookwood Good Size (9 3/4") Matt Green Vase Arts And Crafts C.1912
Advocato Green Rookwood Bowl 214e Made In 1906--very Good Condition
Estate Arts Crafts Original Early Rookwood Art Pottery Green Bowl 1896 No.927 
Antique 1894 Rookwood Stardard Glaze Anna Marie Valentien Art Pottery Ewer
Vintage 1945 Rookwood Art Pottery Rabbit-buny Figurine #6160-figure-paperweight
Rookwood Art Pottery C.1953 Reclining Nude Pin Trinket Ring Tray 2595 Rare Glaze
Rookwood Townley Golden Cocker Spaniel-limited Edition Of 500-24k Gold-lovely!
Rare Early Rookwood Cabinet Handled Vase 1891 Artist Edward Abel
Rookwood Pottery By Albert R Valentien Dated 1895 
Rookwood Cream And Sugar Set
Rookwood Pottery Candlesticks - No. 2311 - 1935 - White
Gorgeous Vintage Rookwood Pottery Water Lily Vase Signed
1932 Antique Rookwood Green Vase # 6053 Deer Stag Pottery Art Nouveau Xxxii Vtg
Rookwood Pottery Vase - Pink Green Marked -5"dia - Hairline Nr
Arts_and_crafts Tile_mission_ceramic Tile_victorian
L51 Nr Vintage Rookwood Pottery Slip Glaze Sky Blue 1930 6 Inch Vase
Rookwood Tray #6145 From 1930
Vintage 1949 Blue Rookwood Art Pottery Cattails Vase-shape 2592
1946 Rookwood Candle Stick Holder
Rookwood 1912 Vase
Rookwood Pottery Vase #6830 Wistful Floral Decoration 6 1/2" Tall No Reserve
Recent News: Rookwood Art Pottery
Source: Google News
Cincinnati Art Museum celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Cincinnati Wing ...
The Cincinnati Herald, May 24thThe Rookwood Pottery Company played a major role in American art pottery at the beginning of the 20th century. Learn more about this significant part of Cincinnati's history with gallery talks led by our in-house Rookwood expert, Curator Anita Ellis...Read more
Work by Paul Evans, George Nakashima, and George Ohr Among Highlights of ...
ArtfixDaily (press release), May 20thArt Pottery, Furniture, Art Glass, Metalwork and Prints in 300 lots: Ceramics by Teco, Saturday Evening Girls and Rookwood, as well as some fine examples of grotesques by the Martin Brothers, an extensive collection of vessels and novelties by the Mad...Read more
Morphy's May 25 Fine Art & General Antiques Auction features broad selection ...
Art Daily, May 14thThe Amphora selection will be followed by Zeck, Rookwood and Roseville pottery. Highlights include a Rookwood umbrella stand, Roseville Futura jardinière and pedestal, and Roseville 10in Sunflower vase. All three items carry individual estimates of...Read more
Rookwood production manager will create her own line
Business Courier of Cincinnati, May 10thWilliams will be shifting her focus to make her own line of tiles for the historic tile and pottery brand. Joe Wilhelm will step in as production manager at Rookwood, and he will oversee all existing and new product introductions. There will be a total...Read more
So Cincinnati: Union Terminal Art Murals
WKRC TV Cincinnati, May 10thHe photographed real moments - like a man shaping Rookwood Pottery - then turned them into paintings. The Museum Center has some of his one third scale cartoons. The Ravenna Tile Company used the cartoons to match color so their craftsmen could...Read more
All in the Family: Frys' treasures in Cincinnati Wing
Cincinnati.com (blog), May 8thAnd so began a five-decade period in which Cincinnati was at the center of the American Aesthetic movement that spawned Rookwood Pottery (founded by Maria Longworth Nichols) and elevated the status of women artists to international renown...Read more
'How It's Made' to feature Rookwood Pottery
Cincinnati.com (blog), May 1stRookwood Pottery Co. ceramic urns will be featured on “How It's Made” on May 16 (9 p.m., Science Channel), about the time a Science Channel crew returns to Rookwood's Over-the-Rhine studios to film artists making custom fireplace installations. The May...Read more
Rookwood Pottery gets double feature on national TV show
Business Courier of Cincinnati, April 30thRookwood Pottery Co. will be featured on the Science Channel's “How It's Made” on May 16. The episode, taped at Rookwood's Over-the-Rhine studios and showroom in August 2012, displays how the historic company creates ceramic urns that were...Read more