Pitcher 1875

Curator: Here we have a remarkable ceramic piece from 1875, a pitcher by Karl L.H. Müller, residing here at the Met. Editor: The whiteness is almost startling. It’s stark, but with those playful animal features—a lion's head spout, is it? —giving it this unexpected wink. Like finding modern humour in a serious, antique face. Curator: It’s made of earthenware with relief work that narrates what seems like a genre scene. One man in period dress offering a cup to another… It’s theatrical. Do you think it depicts a historical event? Editor: The piece feels both grand and commonplace. Is the 'everydayness' a carefully constructed thing, or an honest mirroring? We see figures but with an industrial aesthetic…a very specific white, what can it convey beyond cleanness? Curator: I like your instinct. These objects blur function and fine art, revealing a moment in material culture and industrial practice. Perhaps Müller wanted to ennoble the everyday. Notice the U.P.M, NY markings – what's your feeling on what this piece represents? Editor: The surface almost whispers about the hands that touched it, those who mined the clay and molded it into this shape and who embellished its functionality with animal features that hint to social hierarchy or status? All under the roof of the United Potteries Manufacturing Company. So it is almost as much about status as it is drinking. Curator: The men’s postures and the lion-like spout makes me question our idea of craft – as this feels particularly subversive; almost fantastical while staying practical! The maker is saying something… Editor: Subversive…Yes! I think what attracts me is its unapologetic oddness. This is a vessel with a voice; almost screaming, a beautiful echo across time. Curator: Indeed! Reflecting on it all, this piece holds the ordinary up to scrutiny under a bold, expressive eye; doesn’t it? Editor: For me, its power is rooted in that conversation it strikes; a challenge to the very boundaries of the things we decide we have a use for or what gives beauty to things. And to drink in!