Silvie Granatelli (VA), Art Pottery Teapot with Stand

Made at Penland School of Craft (NC), 1995, lidded porcelain teapot with conforming footed stand, decorated with black linework and cross-hatched orbs to whole, teapot signed and dated to underside.

Teapot 5 3/4 x 7 1/2 x 4 1/2 in.; stand 3 x 3 x 1 1/4 in.

From the Collection of Mignon Durham, Asheville, North Carolina

Silvie Granatelli is known for thrown and altered functional porcelain pieces influenced by Italian ceramics and the natural world around her rural Virginia studio. She is well known for her swan-handled pouring vessels. Granatelli primarily uses a porcelain body mixed with apple cider vinegar to create slip cast works. These are finished with either a stain or glaze and can be fired in a range of atmospheres. She typically uses a gas kiln fired up to cone 10.

Her work explores themes surrounding food and meals. She is especially interested in rituals and culture and the particular moods her tablewares evoke when used.

Granatelli's first experience with clay was in 1966 at the Kansas City Art Institute. She studied with Ken Ferguson who encouraged his students to pursue careers as potters. After graduate school she began creating pottery that focused on enhancing the serving of food and has followed this path for over 40 years. Each piece is created with the end use in mind.

Bio courtesy of the Marks Project.

Very small firing cracks visible to underside of stand at feet; some light crazing to teapot lid.