Ceramics in black and white

 

Black on white or vice versa has been used effectively with Eastern calligraphy in art to draw more attention to the the form of the strokes. As the letters quite often consist of simple strokes, the combination is stark and appealing. Early Greek pottery also featured a strong emphasis on using black figures over a lighter background. giving a silhouette effect.

Monochromatic imagery commands a different perception, especially if you’re working without any shades in between. With black and white, the greater contrast makes a bolder statement, creates more depth and mystique, and makes the patterns and designs more dramatic. This can be compelling or conversely over-intensify the appearance. Black and white always produces textures that appear to have more depth and crisper lines by virtue of the wider dynamic range and greater contrast. The added resolution and detail that is possible adds a hyper-realism to the subject, this is evident in B & W photography.

Due to not having the option of using colour film in the beginning, both photography and movies progressed the genre of black and white to a captivating level. Since the late 1960’s, few mainstream films have been shot entirely in black-and-white. In photography it also is less favored then in earlier eras, even though colour digital files can be converted to black and white relatively easily. I think that black and white ceramic arts are being more explored now then in the past. Pottery has always had a range of several colours to work with and never really went through a stage where black and white was used exclusively. With decorative ceramics, it is harder to utilize the shades of grey as easily as in the photo medium, so monochromatic combinations are more common in purely black and white decorative styles.

 

 

 

Kathy Victorino - black and white geometric zig zag potKathy Victorino – black and white geometric ceramic vessel

 

 

 

Black and white modern bar stool

Black and white modernist bar stool

 

 

Sally Hook black and white vase with sun and male face motifs

Black and white vase – Sally Hook

 

 

 

Art Deco vase, decorated with spherical, geometric black graphics.

Molded earthenware Art Deco vase, decorated with spherical, geometrized black graphics.

Signed  Fructuoso –    1930’s

 

 

 

Vintage Arabia ceramic Zebra, 1963 Finland

Vintage Arabia Zebra, 1963 Finland Black and White Pottery – Domestikate

 

 

 

Populate or Perish - Ceramic sculpture by Pru Morrison white kangaroos on a black background

‘Populate or Perish’ – Pru Morrison

 

 

 

Square Tumbler with Buzzard - Adam Posnak

Square Tumbler with Buzzard – Adam Posnak

 

 

Handbuilt Tripod Ceramic Vessel by Carol Eddy

Handbuilt Tripod Ceramic Vessel with colored engobes and stains

Carol Eddy

 

 

Acoma Sgraffito Pottery Jar - R Garciawith deer and bird motifs with abstract patterns

Acoma Sgraffito Pottery Jar –  R Garcia

 

 

Junko Kitamura - Black and white ceramic bowl

Junko Kitamura – Black/white bowl

 

 

maria_acosta_black_creme pottery

Maria Acosta

Maria is known for her flawless painting and unique figures on the bottom of her pots. She is a fixture in the Central barrio of Mata Ortiz with her many varied designs .

 

 

 

Dorothy Torivio - Black on White geometric olla vessel

Dorothy Torivio  – Black-on-White

 

 

 

Sally Hook twin handled vase

Sally Hook — twin handled black and white vase

 

 

Black and White decanters - Scheier

Black and White decanters  – Scheier

 

 

Laura Carrlin Ceramics - London, UK

Laura Carrlin Ceramics – London

 

 

Sew Zinski abstract contemporary ceramic bowl

Sew Zinski ceramic bowl

 

 

Sarvas black & white abstract black and white wavy design pottery vessel

Savvas Pottery

 

 

Marianne Starck for Michael Andersen (Denmark) sgraffito jug / vase with deer motifs. Circa 1960

Marianne Starck for Michael Andersen (Denmark) sgraffito vase. Circa 1960

 

 

Nkhensani Nkosi - " Tea Time Moments " teapot with cup and saucer

Nkhensani Nkosi –  ” Tea Time Moments “

Gele

Rowena Gilbert bowls

Rowena Gilbert

 

 

Miry Clay stoneware pottery tray

Miry Clay Pottery

 

 

Hubert Ceramics cubist teapot

Hubert Ceramics cubist slab teapot

 

 

Chulucanas Pottery - three B and W vessels

Chulucanas Pottery

 

 

Jan Richardson square vase with four legs - Spring

Jan Richardson – ‘Spring’ –square vase

 

 

Black n white Raku geometric vase - Terry Ha

Black n white Raku vase – Terry Ha

 

 

 

PlaceTime-Staffordshire teapot

Staffordshire Tea Pot

 

 

Black and white ceramic vessels with incised surface

Mermaid Bowl Dark blue sgrafitto on white byTessa Morgan

Mermaid Bowl Dark blue sgrafitto on white – Tessa Morgan

Tessa’s signature work consists of a white clay body decorated in dark blue slip which is then dipped in a clear glaze.

 

 

Black and white surafce textured vessel

Black and white surafce textured vessel

Dries Holten mid century modernist vase

Dutch Vase – mid-century – Dries Holten

 

 

Julia Janeway sgraffito magpie plate, black and white bird on mustard yellow background

Julia Janeway magpie dish

 

 

Gordon-baldwin-bowl fine ceramic walls

Gordon Baldwin Bowl

( Andrew Muir )

 

 

Atomic 1950's Sgraffito patterned dish by Lord David Queensberry

Atomic 1950’s Sgraffito patterned dish by Lord David Queensberry for Crown Staffordshire China 1955

 

 

Acoma pottery canteen vessel with sgraffito decoration - R.Garcia

Acoma pottery canteen vessel with sgraffito decoration – R.Garcia

 

 

Seraphin Soudbiinine Stylized Fish In The Shape Of A LyreSeraphin Soudbiinine Stylized Fish In The Shape Of A Lyre

National Ceramics Museum Sevres – France

 

 

Mid Century Modernist Pitcher Carstens " Hawaii " - 1957

Mid Century Pitcher Carstens ” Hawaii “  – 1957

 

 

Japanese Contemporary Vase - Kondô YutakaJapanese Vase – Kondô Yutaka

 

 

Black and White paisley toilet bowl

Paisley Throne in black and white

 

 

Keith Campbell black and white lidded vessel

Keith Campbell

Black and white plate by Jjanna Rebecca Lucario Acoma

Jjanna  Rebecca Lucario Acoma – black and white plate

 

 

Contemporary Swirl Bowl - DiVanityDesigns

Swirl Bowl –  DiVanityDesigns

Update 10 june 2014

Wolfworks Studios abstract vase

Wolfworks Studios abstract vase, black and white

Wolfworks Studios black and white baluster vase with naked person motif

Wolfworks Studios abstract vase

Yoshiro Ikeda contemporary Japanese pottery lidded vessel

Yoshiro Ikeda contemporary Japanese pottery

Black and white face close up - Diane Huminic-pinterest

Black and white face close up  – Diane Huminic-pinterest

Black and White face paint - piccsy

Black and White face paint – via piccsy

Jun Kaneko Dango, 2001 Hand built glazed ceramic--83h-x-30w-x-16

Jun Kaneko Dango, 2001 Hand built glazed ceramic sculpture

83 inch height  x 30 x 16

magpie figurine by Anita Reay

Anita Reay magpie sculpture

Australia

moodie girl-print-motif cearmic vessel - Pauline- Doyle

Moody Girl ceramic bottle – Pauline Doyle

Using terra-cotta clay, I spray over the red clay with a white slip. After the slip drys a bit, I scratch back through the slip to see  the clay and produce a design on the form. Here you see two faces. Later, I shade with underglaze or coloured slip. This ancient process is known as sgraffito. – Pauline Doyle

 

 

PS Porcelain cup face motif female

PS Porcelain cup

 

 

Stig Lindberg dish for Gustavsberg with illustration in black on white of a girl hanging clothes

Stig Lindberg dish for Gustavsberg

Jun Kaneko,-Dango,

Jun Kaneko, Black and White Dango,

 

 

Black and white squiggle bowl by Mark Dally

Large black and white squiggle bowl by Mark Dally

Chris Theiss A Change Of Direction

Chris Theiss – ‘A Change Of  Direction’ –  a teapot of challenging perspectives.

Whiteware, vitreous slip, sgraffito – Height 16 inches

 

 

 

Harris-Deller--geometrically spiral decorated vessel

Harris Deller

Cinema Gallery

 

 

 

Laurie-Goldstein-~-Teapot in black and white stripes

Laurie Goldstein

 

 

 

'Patchwork-Bottle-Form'-by-Ryan-Thomas-handbuilt

‘Patchwork Bottle Form’ by Ryan Thomas

 

 

 

Pierre-Boncampain--vase-vénus-fond-bleu - Squatting nude female motif

Pierre Boncampain — vase vénus fond bleu

 

 

 

 

Sarah-Farrelly-wildboar scuplpture in black and white

‘Wildboar’ Sarah Farrelly

 

Ursula-Commandeur abstract ceramic art

Ursula Commandeur

 

Gordon-Baldwin-abstract-black and white ceramic cup

Gordon Baldwin-1996

 

 

black and whit lidded vessel Alistair Danhieux

Alistair Danhieux pottery, France

 

 

 

Corrine-Chino fine detail hand painted Acoma Pueblo pottery

 Fine line hand painted Acoma Pueblo pottery – Corrine Chino

angular-sgraffito cup-Christopher-Theiss

“Staged Kitchen Cup” – Angular sgraffito cup — Christopher Theiss

 

 

Celestial-Matter-by-Ronnie-Phillips-of-The-Appalachian-Center-for-Craft

‘Celestial Matter’ by Ronnie Phillips

The Appalachian Center for Craft

 

Mid Century ceramic black and white pourer and salt and pepper shakers
Mid Century Ellis ceramic black and white pourer and salt and pepper shakers

 

Ans Vink-paper-mache-clay-paverol-figures

Ans Vink paper mache clay paverol figures

 

 

 

 

 

7 Comments

  1. diane o'connr
    Posted March 4, 2014 at 8:31 pm | Permalink

    Hi, program chairman for a ceramic group and this site is absolutely fabulous for new ideas. THANK YOU.

  2. J Morgado
    Posted August 23, 2014 at 3:18 pm | Permalink

    Excelent site

  3. mahdi arabali
    Posted July 25, 2015 at 8:03 am | Permalink

    thank you.perfect site

  4. Karen
    Posted July 15, 2017 at 12:12 am | Permalink

    Thank you! Very inspiring!

  5. will freije
    Posted February 2, 2018 at 8:45 am | Permalink

    these are wonderful photos—how does a person connect with photos re dimensions and price

  6. Ian Round
    Posted February 17, 2019 at 7:08 pm | Permalink

    I teach Ceramics to evening class students your Images are inspirational and show the extent to what can be achieved using various techniques Thank you

  7. Posted July 13, 2022 at 5:04 pm | Permalink

    Dear administrator of this website: http://www.veniceclayaertosts.com
    You have an item of our work on your website. Unfortunately you have written our name underneath not correctly. Our name is SAVVAS POTTERY and not SARVAS POTTERY as you have written. Please correct it as soon as possible.
    Awaiting your reply
    Panicos Georgiades
    Manager of Savvas Pottery

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