Paul Soldner

Beatles and Playboy

1968

  • Glazed earthenware; raku-fired, sgraffito, hand-formed
  • 3 x 18 3/4 x 19 1/8 in. (7.6 x 47.6 x 48.6 cm)
  • Gift of the Johnson Wax Company, through the American Craft Council, 1977
  • 1977.2.85

glossary terms

glaze, earthenware, raku, firing, sgraffito

material

Ceramic

location

On View, 3rd Floor Gallery, Freestanding Case

signature

on base

marks

Soldner 68 (on base)

curator’s statement

Similar to the Pop artists of the 1960s, Paul Soldner employs images from popular culture, as seen in the figurative imagery of Beatles and Playboy; a representation of John Lennon from his Imagine album cover, and silhouettes of photographed Playboy models. The juxtaposition of popular, mass-produced imagery with natural, earthy pottery and glazes conjure conflicting ideals that co-exist in our culture.
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artist quote

"I consider clay to be just another art medium. Each artist must be totally responsible for any ultimate value he may make of it." - Objects: USA, Museum of Arts and Design, 1970.
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materials & techniques

"They are ... fired at low temperatures (determined by my eye) and then removed from the kiln while red hot and smoked to develop the desired effects. This technique, although called raku, is related to the Japanese tradition only vaguely. It has become an American technique, for which we have no corrrect name." - Paul Soldner - Objects: USA exhibition catalog, Museum of Arts and Design, 1970.
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object description

This thick, irregular plate has several different earth tone glazes, in a range of creams, grays, and browns. Overlapping female silhouettes and a portrait of John Lennon are carved onto the plate's surface.
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