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I’ve been using Instagram as a microblog about Commeraw, his pots, African-American potters and various happenings / new research discoveries. Please consider following the Commeraw Project here.

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Commeraw @colonialwmsburg. What a great weekend sp

Commeraw @colonialwmsburg. What a great weekend spent with friends old and new in one of my favorite places. As I said from the podium, From the Ground Up: Ceramics in Context was one of the best ceramics conferences I have ever attended. Thanks so much to Williamsburg and @mesdagram for making it happen. Next March at MESDA the tradition continues ... #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #stoneware #ceramics #pottersofcolor #africanamericanart #africanamericanpottery #blackhistory #ceramiceducation #potteryhistory #pottery

So happy to be here @colonialwmsburg! From the Gro

So happy to be here @colonialwmsburg! From the Ground Up: Ceramics in Context starts this evening. I'll be speaking on Commeraw and signing books tomorrow at the museums. Really looking forward to visiting with ceramics friends this weekend! #commeraw #williamsburg #africanamericanart #africanamericanhistory #ceramics 🔥

An iconic Commeraw pot, from the collection of leg

An iconic Commeraw pot, from the collection of legendary collector and author, Georgeanna Greer. Stamped “COMMERAW’S STONEWARE” on one side and “N. YORK / CORLEARS HOOK” on the other, thus bearing all five lines of Commeraw’s signature—a treatment seldom seen. A pediatrician from San Antonio, Greer’s collection was sold in 1993 in the wake of her death. I was able to look this up; this jar realized $4,125 in that sale, possibly a world auction record for a Commeraw vessel at the time. That number has increased 30 fold, but it speaks to how highly thought-of this pot was, even many years before Commeraw’s true identity was known. Greer’s greatest contribution to the field was probably her heavily circulated book, American Stonewares, first published in 1981 and still in print; this jar appears on page 34 of that work. It also appears on the cover of a somewhat well-known price guide issued by Antique Trader in 2005. #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #africanamericanartists #africanamericanart #africanamericanhistory #blackpotters #stoneware #ceramics #crockerfarm #letfreedomring

David Morgan, New York, circa 1800. As part of the

David Morgan, New York, circa 1800. As part of the imagined narrative that existed until very recently, Thomas "Commereau" and David Morgan worked together operating a single stoneware manufactory near modern Corlears Hook Park on the Lower East Side. In reality Commeraw operated his shop--an early African-American institution-- uninterrupted from 1796/7-1819 and Morgan had his own briefly operated kiln some blocks west of Corlears Hook. His untimely death in 1803 helped blot his memory out of the historical record; I'm hopeful that someday more information about this obscure potter will come to light. #commeraw #nycpotter #nycpottery #newyorkstoneware #nyhistory #stoneware #ceramics #ceramichistory #lowereastside #corlearshookpark #pottersofinstagram

Excited to see Commeraw represented in this amazin

Excited to see Commeraw represented in this amazing new exhibition @afamuseum in NYC. If you're nearby (or in the city for the holidays or Americana Week in January) please consider visiting this important show. (Shout out to @antiquesandthearts for giving this a cover story.) #blackhistory #africanamericanart #africanamericanarthistory #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #phylliswheatley #joshuajohnson #blackfounders

Very excited to be speaking at Colonial Williamsbu

Very excited to be speaking at Colonial Williamsburg in March 2024. From the Ground Up: Ceramics in Context is the second annual ceramics symposium held by @colonialwmsburg in conjunction with @mesdagram and I am honored to be a part of it. Please consider attending! I will be presenting "Thomas W. Commeraw: Free Black Abolitionist Potter of Federal New York." Details are available in my Linktree. #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #nypottery #nyhistory #africanamericanart #blackhistory #williamsburg #mesda #ceramicsinamerica #ceramics #ceramiceducation

Two recent lectures I gave in association with @th

Two recent lectures I gave in association with @thestudiopotter / @afamarchivecc and with @fenimoreartmuseum have both been added to YouTube and are available for viewing in my Linktree. Please feel free to check them out; both include good Q & A sessions at their conclusion. #commeraw #commerawsstoneware #thomaswcommeraw #africanamericanarthistory #blackhistory #blackpotter #nyhistory #africanamericanart #africanamericanartist #letfreedomring

Great day spent yesterday at @winterthurmuse with

Great day spent yesterday at @winterthurmuse with @americanceramiccircle. These two Commeraw objects were acquired by Winterthur prior to Henry Francis DuPont's death--in 1963 and 1959, respectively. The pitcher is a particularly rare example. #winterthur #decorativearts #americanceramiccircle #stoneware #ceramics #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #africanamericanart #blackhistory

Contemporaries, former co-workers, perhaps friends

Contemporaries, former co-workers, perhaps friends, Thomas Commeraw and Clarkson Crolius are today the most well-known historic Manhattan stoneware potters. The marks present on these two vessels could be considered the two most coveted by collectors of early New York City stoneware: "COERLEARS HOOK" (used by Commeraw in the 18th century) and "C. CROLIUS / BAYARD STREET" (the rarest Manhattan mark from this period and used perhaps as early as the late 18th century). I have only seen two or three of these Bayard Street vessels. Crolius's family had enslaved but freed Commeraw and his family during the Revolution. #commeraw #crolius #croliuspottery #nyhistory #nycpottery #nystoneware #newyorkpottery #nyceramics #nycpotter #saltglaze #ceramics #earlyamerican #earlyamericanstyle #americana #stoneware #iloveny #ilovenewyork

Special thanks go out to @afamarchivecc and @thest

Special thanks go out to @afamarchivecc and @thestudiopotter for having me yesterday! It was really great getting to share Commeraw's story with their audiences. #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #blackhistory #nyhistory #blackfounders #blackpotter #blackpotters #africanamericanart #africanamericanarthistory #africanamericanartist

Newly discovered Commeraw pitcher. Note the extrem

Newly discovered Commeraw pitcher. Note the extreme similarity between the decoration on this example and the iconic "COERLEARS HOOK" jar @metmuseum. Unmarked, this one of only two Commeraw pitchers known with incised decoration; two from his later period are also known. Commeraw was obsessive about marking his work, which begs the question, was this made by Commeraw at his own manufactory, or was it made prior to him opening his own shop? There is a distinct possibility that this pitcher was thrown and decorated by Commeraw while he was still employed at the shops near City Hall owned by the Crolius family--the same family that enslaved him as a child but also freed and trained him. #commeraw #blackcraftsmen #blackpotters #blackpottersofinstagram #blacknewyork #nyhistory #africanamericanart #africanamericanhistory #africanamericanarthistory #stoneware #saltglaze #nycpottery #newyorkpottery #newyorkstateofmind #letfreedomring

Another live talk coming 10/29 @ 3pm eastern, pres

Another live talk coming 10/29 @ 3pm eastern, presented by @afamarchivecc and @thestudiopotter! Very excited to have this platform to share Commeraw's story. Tickets are free (with optional donation) and are available at the top link in my Linktree (see bio). Hope to see you there. #commeraw #thomaswcommeraw #commerawsstoneware #africanamericanart #blackhistory #africanamericanpottery #blackpotters #ceramics #daviddrake #thomasdowning #nyhistory #nyculture #crockerfarm #stoneware

Two Commeraw objects graced the cover of @maineant

Two Commeraw objects graced the cover of @maineantiquedigest this month! #commeraw #commerawsstoneware #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #blackhistory #africanamericanart #africanamericanarthistory #nyhistory #abolition #crockerfarm #ceramics #stoneware

Big News: Newly discovered 18th century Commeraw j

Big News: Newly discovered 18th century Commeraw jar, one of the finest known. This vessel bears a previously unseen abstract floral design on one side, along with a classic Commeraw upswept floral on the other. Height 12 1/4". Very few of these incised early COERLEARS HOOK vessels are known, all made by Commeraw at a time when he was apparently just opening his Corlears Hook manufactory, before he began to employ other potters in the shop. As such, these were all probably made around the year 1797 and would have been fashioned by his own hands, start to finish. #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #stoneware #ceramics #saltglaze #corlearshookpark #lowereastsideart #nyhistory #blackhistory #africanamericanart #africanamericanarthistory #crockerfarm #letfreedomring

Some treasures by David Drake--enslaved and later

Some treasures by David Drake--enslaved and later free African-American potter of Edgefield District, SC--at @mesdagram. 🔥 #daviddrake #davethepotter #edgefieldpottery #africanamericanart #africanamericanartist #blackhistory

One year ago today I finally released Commeraw's S

One year ago today I finally released Commeraw's Stoneware and I just want to say THANK YOU. My sincerest thanks go out to everyone who has taken interest in this man's story, and especially to those who have helped it magnify by leaps and bounds over the past twelve months: All of the folks @nyhistory who worked so hard and did an amazing job on Crafting Freedom; everyone @fenimoreartmuseum who worked for years on a Commeraw exhibition and gave Crafting Freedom a great home this summer. @roberthunterceramics and @ron.fuchs.77 at #ceramicsinamerica (stayed tuned to the 2024 issue!). @76larube who wrote a fantastic cover piece for @antiquesandthearts. @maineantiquedigest and Antiques & Auction News for their coverage. @guardian and Veronica Esposito for a huge story on "the Black 19th-century potter who historians assumed was white." @arlene_leis for including my Commeraw piece in Women, Collecting, and Cultures beyond Europe. Albany @timesunion and @wskgpubmedia for their coverage of Commeraw @fenimoreartmuseum. @darmuseum who just acquired a Commeraw jar for a new world auction record. And a special, heartfelt thanks to @evemkahn for the interest she took in Commeraw over a decade ago, bringing his story to @nytimes. To everyone else or anyone I neglected to mention--especially those who generously helped me with photographs of Commeraw's work throughout my writing process, or who assisted me at various research institutions--I am forever grateful for your kindness. I am excited to see where Commeraw's story goes from here. ❤️ #commeraw #commerawstoneware #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #blackpotters #africanamericanart #africanamericanartist #nychistory #blackhistory #stoneware #ceramics

A great day spent yesterday visiting @fenimoreartm

A great day spent yesterday visiting @fenimoreartmuseum and talking Thomas Commeraw with @wskgpubmedia / @pbs. I'm forever grateful to everyone at the Fenimore for coming to me years ago about a potential exhibition, and for how they grasped the importance of Commeraw's story early on. Special thanks also to Andy and WSKG for further placing Commeraw before the American public! Crafting Freedom runs until September 24. These pots are displayed in a beautiful space at a beautiful museum--please consider visiting before the show ends. #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #africanamericanarthistory #africanamericanart #blackhistory #carterwoodson #blackpotter #thomasdowning #letfreedomring #pbs

Today, August 15, 2023, marks the bicentennial of

Today, August 15, 2023, marks the bicentennial of Thomas Commeraw's death. It is difficult for me to articulate the impact that this man--long dead when I "met" him--has had on my life. Far more importantly, it is incredible to see the impact he is beginning to have on society at large. I am so grateful that so many of you went out of your way to either order a copy of Commeraw's Stoneware or visit Crafting Freedom @nyhistory or @fenimoreartmuseum . As I once wrote: Despite its culminating sadness, Thomas W. Commeraw's story is one that ultimately inspires. It does so as the tale of a man who achieved greatness despite great adversity; who had courage to incur great personal danger to fight for values worth fighting for; who was willing to lose everything, and did. If you've not yet had an opportunity to spend time with Commeraw's work and numerous documents that help illuminate it, please consider visiting @fenimoreartmuseum prior to Crafting Freedom's closing on September 24. More information is available at the link in bio. (Quote in image is a reconstructed one from Commeraw's West African writings.) #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #blackfounders #blackpotters #africanamericanart #africanamericanarthistory #africanamericanartists #blackhistory #africanamericanhistory #letfreedomring

Last week's lecture on Commeraw's life, pottery an

Last week's lecture on Commeraw's life, pottery and more--hosted by @fenimoreartmuseum--has been uploaded to YouTube. This was a lot of fun with a lot of great questions! Feel free to check it out using the Linktree in bio. #commeraw #thomascommeraw #thomaswcommeraw #croliuspottery #remmeypottery #newyorkstoneware #nycpottery #newyorkpottery #saltglaze #stoneware #ceramics #crockerfarm #blackhistory #blackpotters #africanamericanart

THANK YOU to everyone who tuned in last night! Wha

THANK YOU to everyone who tuned in last night! What an amazing turnout with the best questions I've ever received at the end of a talk. Your attendance was much appreciated by me and everyone involved with Crafting Freedom @fenimoreartmuseum. ❤️ #commeraw #stoneware #stonewarecollectors #fenimore #ceramics #africanamericanart #africanamericanartist #blackhistory #ceramichistory #forgottenpeoplenomore

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