CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA.- The Mint Museum of Art’s Bridges Gallery is now dedicated to the on-going display of North Carolina pottery. “Museum visitors familiar with North Carolina’s pottery legacy and are aware that the Mint Museum is home to the state’s largest collection of historic pottery, have previously been frustrated by the limited number of pieces on display,” stated Dr. Barbara Perry, Curator of Decorative Arts. The initial presentation of Carolina Clay is called Bright, Clear and Beautiful, a phrase used by Dorothy Auman to describe the colorful wares made between 1920 and 1950 as potters adapted their works to a market economy. New material and themes will rotate every six months.

North Carolina’s pottery tradition is unique in this country as the oldest continuing pottery tradition outside of Native American wares. Through the centuries, four distinct styles of pottery existed, from the red earthenware traditions of the Moravians, to Piedmont saltglaze, Catawba Valley ash glazes and more individually conceived Mountain pottery.