Newcomb Archives
Newcomb College Art Department Collection- Newcomb Pottery
2007-5
Table of Contents
Summary Information
- Repository
- Newcomb Archives
- Creator - Creator
- Poesch, Jessie, Dr.
- Title
- Art Department Collection- Newcomb Pottery
- ID
- 2007-5
- Date [inclusive]
- Between 1968 and 1987
- Extent
- 3.5 Cubic feet 3 cartons and 1 oversize box
- Language
- English
Newcomb's Art History
The history of Newcomb College is directly linked to the World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition of 1884-85, which was held in New Orleans to celebrate the introduction of cotton into international commerce. The Louisiana Women's Exhibit was an important division of that exposition because it introduced women's suffrage to the women of New Orleans. As they viewed displays of patented inventions, literary works, handicrafts and decorative art, women realized the potential rewards of working outside the home. Lectures, demonstrations, and academic classes grew from the excitement that was generated by the exhibit. Ellsworth and William Woodward were two brothers who taught art classes. In 1885 when the Exposition closed, they helped to start the Ladies' Decorative Art League in response to the enthusiastic requests of women who wished to continue the art education that they had begun during the Exposition. These two men were to become part of the backbone of Newcomb's foundations.
Newcomb College opened in 1887, only two years after the Exposition closed. It was born from the mind of Mrs. Josephine Louise Le Monnier Newcomb, a widow who founded the college in memory of her daughter Harriott Sophie Newcomb. Dr. Brandt Dixon was chosen as the first and only president of Newcomb College, and he hired the Woodward brothers to organize the Art Department. The art department was an immediate success; in the first semester of Fall 1887, 91 students enrolled in art classes. Many of these students came from the Ladies' Decorative Art League.
The Art Department quickly expanded, and crafts were introduced to the department in 1895. Over the next several decades, Newcomb became famous worldwide for its pottery. In time, Newcomb pottery would win eight international honors and awards.
Scope and Contents note
This collection of Art Department papers concerns the flurry of activity over Newcomb Pottery in the 1980s. The pottery, produced at Newcomb College in the late 19th century until 1940, was designed, decorated, and glazed by Newcomb Art students. It was sold nationally as part of resurgence of interest in the decorative arts, which included an arts-crafts movement in the midst of an industrial age. In the late 1970s and early 1980s art historians and ceramicists alike began to take interest in this earlier period. Momentum grew, spawning a traveling exhibition of the pottery, a book "Newcomb Pottery," research by graduate students (i.e., Jody Blake), and magazine and newspaper coverage. Of particular interest is a short paper by Sarah Draughn Freeman, entitled "The Book of Nature," which describes the pottery's stylized, but strict representation of Louisiana flora and fauna. The collection would appeal to anyone interested in topics such as American decorative arts, ceramics and the women of the 19th and 20th centuries, art deco design, and the higher education of women in the arts.
Organization and Arrangement
Received in various manila envelopes and file folders, the materials from the Tulane Department of Art on Newcomb Pottery have been organized according to two main categories: (1) the exhibitions of Newcomb pottery and (2) the materials relating to the book "Newcomb Pottery." This book was written by Dr. Jessie Poesch, a former Professor in the Department of Art. Carton one contains materials relating to the exhibitions, including correspondence regarding the borrowing and return of pieces and press releases from various museums. Cartons two and three form a detailed record of the writing of Dr. Poesch's "Newcomb Pottery." They include many handwritten and final drafts of the chapters, as well as catalogues of pottery and supplementary material. The supplementary material includes an oversized box, an 11" x 17" copy of the book's gallerys, and a few oversized public pieces for the traveling exhibit.
Folders in bad shape were replaced with acid-free folders; folders in good shape were retained. All staples and paperclips have been removed. Newspaper clippings have been reproduced onto acid-free paper. Photographs have been placed in mylar folders and remain in the files next to their corresponding letters.
Administrative Information
Publication Information
Newcomb Archives
Newcomb Center for Research on WomenSeltzer-Gerard Reading Room
62 Newcomb Place
New Orleans, Louisiana, 70118
504 865 5762
vorhoff@tulane.edu
Controlled Access Headings
Corporate Name(s)
- Newcomb College. Art Department.
- Newcomb College. Art Department.
Genre(s)
- Newcomb College, Art
Collection Inventory
NAC-247 Newcomb Pottery Exhibitions Between 1968 and 1987 1.0 Cubic feet 1 cartonGeneral noteArticles on Newcomb Pottery (1985-87) Budget Catalogue requests Clippings/Press Releases/Publicity Correspondence - Smithsonian Exhibition 1984 (ca. 1978-85) Correspondence - Pottery Lending/Purchasing/Donating (ca. 1968-71) Correspondence - Pottery Lending/Purchasing/Donating (ca. 1972-76) Draft Agreement for the 1984-1986 Exhibit Exhibition Cards (1) Exhibition Cards (2) Exhibition Information Exhibit, March 15, 1987 - Newcomb Centennial Fund 629559 Extended Exhibition - Newcomb Pottery Guest List at Newcomb Pottery Exhibition, March 15-16, 1987 Harvard Collection of Newcomb Pottery Invitation List - Newcomb Pottery NEA - Newcomb Pottery Photographs/Negatives - Newcomb Pottery Display Publication Release, Huntsville Museum of Art (1987) Receipts for Newcomb Pottery Exhibition Requests for Borrowing (1) Requests for Borrowing (2) Requests for Borrowing (3) Return of Newcomb Pottery Pieces Scheduling and Potential Sites for Newcomb Pottery Exhibition SITES Educational Brochure - Newcomb Pottery Exhibition SITES - Photographs & Slides Transit (includes Correspondence - Re: Damage) Wright Display Case - Newcomb Pottery Exhibition |
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Newcomb Pottery 2.0 Cubic feet 2 cartonsContents of Carton 1 NAC-248Catalogue - Newcomb Pottery Exhibition Catalogue Catalogue Catalogue Index Cards - 'Newcomb Pottery' Smithsonian - Early Stages- Catalogue Checklist, Notes - Pottery Exhibition Checklist & Catalogue with Notes - Pottery Exhibition Manuscript Draft - 'Newcomb Pottery' Manuscript Draft - 'Newcomb Pottery' Manuscript - 'Newcomb Pottery' Manuscript - 'Newcomb Pottery' Complete Manuscript - 'Newcomb Pottery' Galleys - 'Newcomb Pottery' Chapter I: "Roots of an Enterprise" Chapter I: "Roots of an Enterprise" Chapter II: "The Experiment Begins" Chapter II: "The Experiment Begins" Chapter III: "An Arts-Crafts Spirit" Chapter III: "An Arts-Crafts Spirit" Chapter IV, handwritten draft Chapter IV, handwritten draft Chapter V: "A Change of Place: Changes in Personnel" Chapter V: "A Change of Place: Changes in Personnel" Contents of Carton 2 NAC-249Part I, 'Newcomb Pottery' Part I, 'Newcomb Pottery' Introduction and Chapters I, II - 'Newcomb Pottery' "Exhibits and Sales" "Exhibits and Sales" "'Of Commercial Value' - Exhibits and Sales" Appendix- Jessie Poesch's Copy - 'Newcomb Pottery' Appendix/Index - 'Newcomb Pottery' Index- Working Copy - 'Newcomb Pottery' Research Materials and Illustrations - 'Newcomb Pottery' Acknowledgements - 'Newcomb Pottery' Art Students, Newcomb, 1885-1933 Blake, Jody, "Fair Years for American Pottery: 1900-1915"- M.A. Thesis, Tulane, 1983 Blake, Jody, "Fair Years for American Pottery: 1900-1915"- M.A. Thesis, Tulane, 1983 "The Craftsmen" by Jessie Poesch and Sallie Main Spanola - handwritten notes The Craftsmen - Timeline and Signatures The Craftsmen - Timeline and Signatures The Craftsmen - Biographical Abstracts Freeman, Sarah Draughn - "The Book of Nature: Plant Forms on Newcomb Pottery" Freeman, Sarah Draughn - "The Book of Nature: Plant Forms on Newcomb Pottery" Freeman, Sarah Draughn - "The Book of Nature: Plant Forms on Newcomb Pottery"- Notes, Drawings Marks and Dating "The Potters and Ceramists" by Jessie Poesch Potters and Ceramists- List Schiffer Publishing, Inc.- Correspondence (ca. 1980-1984) Separated Materials notePhotographic Illustrations, Chapter II, 'Newcomb Pottery' was moved to Photographic Collection |
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OV-004 Newcomb Pottery - Gallery 1.0 Cubic feet 1 oversized boxGeneral noteDisplay Materials |
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