The Portland Vase: Mania & Muse (1780-2023)

The Portland Vase, the ancient Roman glass cameo amphora held in the British Museum, has been replicated and reinterpreted countless times, becoming a global brand that has resonated with makers, collectors, and consumers for centuries. Featuring more than 65 artworks, this book examines the role of brands in our culture and asks why Western Classical traditions dominate the artistic canon, and how that canon might be reconsidered and disrupted. Josiah Wedgwood, Viola Frey, Clare Twomey and Robert Lugo, among others engaged with the cameo-glass masterpiece. Their creative conceptual choices respond to complex histories of transfiguration and representation to create a new set of visual and cultural dialogues. Traces the history of the Portland Vase as a global influencer in art and ceramics.

The Portland Vase, an ancient Roman glass cameo amphora held in the British Museum, has been a global brand that has resonated with makers, collectors, and consumers for centuries, replicated and reinterpreted countless times. The Portland Vase: Mania and Muse asks why and how a singular Classical vase becomes a legend, an “influencer,” and an artistic and commercial muse across time and place to artists such as Josiah Wedgwood, Viola Frey, Chris Wight, Michael Eden, Nicole Cherubini, Clare Twomey, and Roberto Lugo. Featuring more than sixty-five artworks, this richly illustrated catalog examines the role of brands in our culture, considers why Classical traditions dominate the artistic canon, and speculates on how that tradition might be reconsidered and disrupted.

• | Author: Crocker Art Museum, Rachel Gotlieb
• | Publisher: Hirmer Verlag
• | Publication Date: Jun 20, 2024
• | Number of Pages:
• | Language:
• | Binding: Hardback
• | ISBN-13: 9783777441566
• | ISBN-10: 3777441562