Sargent Claude Johnson (American, 1888–1967)
San Francisco, California
Pair of Teacups
INV-2529
Sargent Claude Johnson (American, 1888–1967)
San Francisco, California1941
Modernismstudio pottery20th CenturyAmerican Arts and Crafts Movementceramicstea cup
Date
1941
Medium
Earthenware and glaze
Dimensions
Each; irregular: 7 × 10 × 6.9 cm (2 13/16 × 3 15/16 × 2 3/4 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Roger and J. Peter McCormick Endowment Fund
Although Sargent Claude Johnson is best known for figural works, these teacups are a rare example of his functional objects. While he was perennially interested in exploring black identity, as in the sculpture Head of a Black Woman (2000.86), Johnson broadened his subject matter and experimented with materials over the course of his career. Here, he used contrasting semicircles and rectangles to shape the handles of the cups and carried this focus on geometric form into abstract patterns, silhouetted figures, and musical instruments.
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