The Vase in the Home 
THE WONDERFUL IMPROVEMENT IN DESIGN, COLORING AND 
REFINEMENT THAT IS NOTICEABLE IN THE POTTERY BOWL 
OR JAR, THE GLASS FLOWER RECEPTACLE, THE JARDINIERE 
by Katherine Pope 
Photographs by J. Mitchell Elliot and others 
H 
were our vases 
IDEOUS indeed 
of but a few years back, beau¬ 
tiful indeed are many of those of the 
present day. We lately loitered in the 
art rooms of a famous dealer, and there 
studied various exquisite forms, studied them near at hand, and 
also viewed them from a distance; the while getting realization 
of their part in the beauty of a home. 
And we found that even in this expensive day, this “dear” 
land, one can procure really good vases and jars at expenditure of 
only a modest sum. The combination of beauty and simplicity 
we, alas, had too often found of a prohibitive costliness, but in 
the way of vase and jar they are offering to-day some really good 
cheap things. We have in mind an inexpensive pottery of simple, 
classic forms, the color a shade of green reposeful and exquisite, 
the finish a satiny smoothness. And we have in mind a still 
lower priced pottery, honest, artistic, a rough green surface, the 
shapes harmonious with the general intent of vase and bowl. 
The vases and jars of these illustrations of modern pottery 
are usable; their unobtrusiveness, the lovely green of the one, 
the retiring brown-mottled green of the other, just 
the setting needed to bring out the beauty of 
blossom and branch. In the silky sleek pottery 
burnished autumn leaves seem very much at home, 
a low bowl of the rough green seems fashioned on 
purpose for the sturdier of our field flowers— 
golden-rod and frost daisies and white and purple 
asters. And speaking of the right receptacle for 
sturdy wild growths, did you ever see one of those 
black-brown Indian jars holding a wealth of 
golden-rod? The brown-black contrasts splendidly 
with the yellow of the weed, the bold curves of 
the pottery stand out strong below the great sheaf 
of field beauty. 
Some vases are meant for utilitarian purposes, 
some should have asked of them no service save to 
stand alone in their beauty — it being full excuse for 
their being. One of the vases we studied, a vase 
from the pottery regarded as the glory of American 
ceramic art, it would have been sacrilege to lessen 
by placing therein distracting flower and leaf. It 
was a fairly large jar, the shape simple and 
graceful. The form was attractive, but the color¬ 
ing! An iris-colored background, that indescribable 
purplish-gray; the only decoration, two swirling 
bronze peacock feathers. 
We are well aware that the Japanese of late 
years have imposed on us to a degree, sent to the 
American markets—and European too — hideous, 
inartistic, impossible things. And they can pro¬ 
duce such beautiful wares so cheaply. Let us hope 
the wily Oriental ere long will realize he has gone 
too far, will cease offering us the garish products of 
his land, give us more of simple beauty. Now only 
here and there are to be had good examples of When you 
Japanese art, among these a few vases that furnish Reserve 6 
illustration of the national worship of beauty. receptacle 
Though their bad things are very, 
very bad, their good things are very, 
very good. And in their flower recep¬ 
tacles they have been such true artists, 
realizing, as we did not until recently, 
that a vase must be subordinate to the blossom it holds. As a 
rule, flower vases are better without special decoration, and the 
Japanese at his best can give us a variety of this sort—forms of 
classic simplicity; what decoration there is, irregular and 
indefinite; the vase colors, those that intensify flower beauty— 
greens and browns, neutral grays, yellows, and blues. 
In looking for really good Japanese vases you will probably 
find what you want in the obscure shop rather than the much 
exploited “Japanese department.” We one day bought at a tiny 
Jap place a lovely little flower-jar for half a dollar, the coloring 
soft blue-gray, soft green, brown and white-gray, the vase un¬ 
glazed, the design indistinct figures, one losing itself in another 
— the effect as a whole, blue-gray and white. The little vase was 
shapely, the subdued color beautiful — it has proven just right for 
flowers of many seasons, many kinds. 
Formerly, coloring in vases accessible to the 
average person, was garish, obtrusive; in addition 
to the simple forms preferred to-day, soft tones are 
to the fore, “grave and subdued color.” In pottery 
uniform color is liked, but monotony avoided by 
range of hues, mayhap dark slate gray melting into 
mellow blues and violets. A rough green surface 
will show streaked and speckled, more pleasing 
than the unbroken color, giving light and shade. 
There are changeable sea-greens, there are dark reds 
melting into warm browns. 
And as to indicate the taste of the day, decora¬ 
tion is suggested rather than boldly outlined; in 
one class of pottery, flower and leaf are beauti¬ 
fully indistinct in color and form, seem to melt 
back into the background, seem hesitatingly to 
emerge therefrom, a very part of the vase — not 
something stuck on, obviously “decoration.” The 
backgrounds also are never emphatic, buffs and 
browns and blues of such softness one scarce knows 
whether to name them buffs and browns and blues. 
Another illustration of decoration softly emerg¬ 
ing from background is seen in a vase of bluish- 
green whereon purple berries and a leafless branch 
are suggested. Quiet in color and of a loveliness, 
are white chrysanthemums out of a pale lavender 
background. Not only do the admired Japanese 
vases show beautiful blue-gray and white-gray har¬ 
monies, but one of our American potteries is 
widely known for its use of grayish-white and sub¬ 
dued blue. Another soft and pleasing conjoining 
of tones is seen in vases of dark gray and dull green. 
The wonderfully beautiful iridescent and opales¬ 
cent glass of the day should be given its full value, 
all the evanescent color be searched for and revealed. 
Do not place therein water or posies, let vase or jar 
(Continued on page x) 
have found 
vase make 
as a flower 
( 76 ) 
