Sauceboat and underplate ("American Modern" Dinnerware)

Arts of the Americas

1937–59

An ardent promoter of modern design, Russel Wright developed his American Modern line of dinnerware in 1937, which included serving pieces such as this sauceboat. Wright claimed that the organic shapes of the pattern reflected each piece’s function, and that muted colors such as seafoam blue were used in order to “dramatize” the service of food. Although Wright designed the line in 1937, American Modern was not produced until 1939, because of the skepticism of potential manufacturers during the Great Depression. Nonetheless, it has proved to be one of the most popular ceramic patterns ever created.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Arts of the Americas

Artist: Russel Wright (Designer)
Title: Sauceboat and underplate ("American Modern" Dinnerware)
Place: Steubenville (Object made in:)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: c. 1937–1959
Medium: Earthenware and glaze
Dimensions: Sauce boat: 6.4 × 22.9 × 16.5 cm (2 1/2 × 9 × 6 1/2 in.); Underplate: 2.5 × 27.6 × 15.9 cm (1 × 10 7/8 × 6 1/4 in.)
Credit Line: Gift of Beryl C. Michels
Reference Number: 1995.251a-b

Jennifer M. Downs, “ ‘The New Modern Feeling’: A Catalogue of the Collection,” “Shaping the Modern: American Decorative Arts at the Art Institute of Chicago”, special issue, Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 27, no. 2 (2001): 59–61, cat. 16 (ill.).

Beryl C. Michels (1923-2015; born Beryl Cohn), Chicago then West Hartford, CT, from c. 1947–52 [according to Committee on American Arts minutes, Oct. 12, 1995; incoming receipt, RX20946, Sept. 26, 1995; copy in curatorial object file]; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1995.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Suggested Terms

Sauceboat and underplate ("American Modern" Dinnerware)

Currently Off View

Date:

Artist:

About this artwork

Status

Department

Artist

Title

Place

Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Medium

Dimensions

Credit Line

Reference Number

Extended information about this artwork

Publication History

Provenance

Share

Explore Further

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Gallery actions

Image actions

Share