"What I'm striving for is that kind of perfection that
makes my pots seem BORN, not made or contrived; an organic
quality that comes from attunement rather than merely expertise."
- John Tilton
Porcelain Art Pottery
A History
Porcelain art pottery has a long and illustrious history in the United States, Europe and Asia. The earliest known porcelain art pottery is from the Chinese T'ang Dynasty (A.D. 618-906), which is also the period of time when porcelain clay was developed. Porcelain clay is not a naturally occurring substance. It was developed by the Chinese by combining a local kaolin and petuntse, a ceramic ingredient indigenous to China. (Petuntse was later approximated by Europeans by combining flint and feldspar.) Today's porcelain clays still consist of variations of the different forms of kaolin, flint and feldspar. Europeans first began using porcelain during the early 18th century, and the first documented porcelain art pottery in the U.S. was created during the American Arts and Crafts movement, around the turn of the 20th century.
Within the genre of the traditional art pottery vessel, my work finds its muse in forms ranging from ancient Chinese to contemporary Scandinavian pieces. It also finds inspiration in the physical and biological sciences and in my own continuing exploration of spirituality.
In pottery, as well as in life, my focus is on the quiet, subtle and mysterious. My goal is to make pieces that embody the sublime, simple and precise quality I perceive pervading all creation.
I hope you will enjoy your visit.
- John Tilton
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All photos on this site by the artist except
as noted.