Sewer-Pipe Vase with Applied Decoration
Smithsonian American Art Museum

Sewer-Pipe Vase with Applied Decoration

Unidentified · 20th century

alkaline glazed stoneware
Smithsonian American Art Museum
CC0 — Public Domain
Smithsonian American Art Museum

Early-twentieth-century factory workers often created whimsical objects as a diversion from the monotony of their jobs. They used any materials that were available and often gave them away as gifts. In these pieces, the artists covered old sections of sewer pipes with clay, then decorated the surface. The molded handles suggest that the pots were intended to be used.

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