Lecture: Mark Shapiro on the Life and Legacy of Free Black Potter, Thomas W. Commeraw
Thursday, February 29, 2024
5:00-6:00pm
Ceramics Program, Office for the Arts at Harvard
224 Western Ave, Allston, Massachusetts 02134
This in-person lecture is free and open to the public, but space is limited and registration is required.
Potter and writer Mark Shapiro will talk about his research and co-curation of the exhibition Crafting Freedom: The Life and Legacy of Free Black Potter Thomas W. Commeraw, at the New-York Historical Society (January–May 2023). Commeraw was a master craftsman who made some of the most iconic stoneware in early America. Born enslaved, he rose to prominence as a free Black entrepreneur, owning and operating a successful pottery, though for more than a century his racial identity would be misconstrued in the collection of his work. Over two decades, Commeraw innovated efficient techniques to decorate and brand his work, while amassing property, engaging in debates over state and national politics, and advocating for the rights of New York City’s free Black community. His decision to emigrate with his family to Africa in 1820 brings into focus the diminishing horizon of freedom for Black people in the north during the second decade of the 19th century. Mark will also talk about the relationship of his research projects to his own studio practice.
Speaker bio
Mark Shapiro has taught numerous workshops nationally and internationally and mentored a number of accomplished apprentices at his Stonepool Pottery. His work is included in many public collections. He edited A Chosen Path: The Ceramic Art of Karen Karnes (UNCP 2010) and has published dozens of articles, reviews, and interviews. A 2019 Smithsonian Artist Resident Fellow and two-time Center for Craft Research Fund recipient (2008, 2021), he co-curated Crafting Freedom: The Life and Legacy of Black Potter Thomas W. Commeraw at the New-York Historical Society (2023). He is on the board of the American Ceramic Circle and an advisor to Studio Potter and Ceramics in America journals. He is currently a Smithsonian National Museum of American History Research Associate.
