Howard Kottler

Howard Kottler (1930-1989) was one of the West Coast ceramicists who helped to redefine the entire field of contemporary American ceramic art. Born in Cleveland, Kottler earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in biological sciences in 1952, a Master of Arts in ceramics in 1956, and a Doctorate degree in ceramics in 1964, all at Ohio State University. He studied with Maija Grotell at the Cranbrook Academy of Art., where he earned a Master of Fine Arts in 1957. That same year, he was awarded a Fulbright grant for study in Finland. Before moving west in 1964 to teach at the University of Washington in Seattle, Kottler created traditional ceramic work. Exposure to California funk-a new movement that rejected established art theories-gave Kottler license to use his art to satirize American culture. In his subsequent work, Kottler applied glazes and decals to ready-made ceramic objects, rarely modeling and casting his clay.

His work is included in important public collections including Cooper-Hewitt Museum, New York, New York, Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit, Michigan, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, The Museum of Ceramic Art at Alfred, Alfred, New York, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts, National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, Japan, Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, Renwick Gallery, Washington D.C., Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, New York.

Photo: PD Rearick, Courtesy Paul Kotula Projects