Stoneware Jar c. 1937

Curator: Annie B. Johnston's drawing, "Stoneware Jar," made around 1937. It's a rather unassuming piece rendered with drawing and ceramic media on paper. It has this academic, almost Regionalist style. Editor: My first impression is one of quiet utility. There’s something profoundly simple and grounding about it. Its earth tones evoke connection to labor and a sense of handcrafted care. Curator: Johnston was working in a specific historical moment—the late 1930s, smack-dab in the heart of the Great Depression. I think that had to influence both the selection of the subject matter as well as the style. Stoneware, after all, speaks volumes about accessible, practical, and enduring craftsmanship. Editor: Absolutely. And consider what the stoneware jar represented to families during that period—preserving food, storing vital supplies. It's an object deeply entwined with survival, self-sufficiency and communal support. Also, don't you find the depiction a little sad, or rather poignant? It is just an empty pot and almost melancholic when viewed under the shadow of the depression. Curator: I agree; it invites thoughts about social class, artistic movements during economic hardship, and even gender. Who would have made the pottery for example? Was it men or women? There is also a broken, chipped detail around the rim. Do you think it infers its utility is over? What impact has consumption played to render its once valuable materiality? Editor: I think you bring up a key point on gender—this artwork may highlight women's often unseen and unrecognized labor within the domestic sphere and how craft became tied with low art and not suitable for a professional fine arts practice. And the missing piece heightens a kind of feminist critique; suggesting the subject is flawed yet not totally depleted from value, as society tends to demand and pressure. Curator: It seems Annie B. Johnston offers a study into art that is both reflective and quietly challenging! Editor: Indeed! Stoneware Jar isn't just a drawing, but an artifact speaking to both personal and societal resilience.