Rookwood and the Industry of Art

Rookwood Pottery, a Cincinnati women-run company, was at the forefront of the American Arts & Crafts Movement at the turn of the century. Nancy Owen provides a fascinating look at the development, growth, and eventual death of Rookwood Pottery in the context of the national pottery movement. Interest in art pottery blossomed in the United States around 1880, particularly among upper-class women who established art societies and clubs. Various small-scale pottery companies, usually employing only women, quickly popped up across the country. Rookwood Pottery was one of the few pottery companies that successfully made the transition from small-scale operation to large manufacturer. But, as Owen points out, the company always insisted on presenting itself as "an artist's studio, not a factory" even as it grew into a major business. In an engaging blend of business, art, cultural and women's history, Owen tells the story of this truly unique, and ultimately very successful, enterprise.