During all of my years of art study I was always most interested in pottery.
I experimented extensively with different types of clay, glazes and firing .
techniques. From the Metropolitan Museum of Art Collections, I chose to look at various pieces of pottery.
From the Asian Art Collection I chose highlight #17 of 50. It is a large jar made of porcelain, which is a special very soft pure clay, first developed in China. It requires an extremely high firing temperature. It was made during the Choson dynasty (1392 - 1910), 18th - 19th Century Korea. These porcelain wares were associated with Neo-Confucianism, the Choson state's official ideology, displacing Buddhism which had been promoted by the court rulers of the preceding Koryo dynasty (918 - 1392). Jars of this type were admired for their irregular shape, as a result of slight sagging during the firing process. .
The second piece that I chose was from the Ancient Near Eastern Art Collection. I chose highlight #36 of 50. It is a large jar decorated with frieze of bulls. Glazed in many colors, it represents an advanced glazing technique. It is one of three jars in the Museum's collection that supposedly were found at the early first Millennium B.C. site of Ziwiye in northwestern Iran.
It is similar to pieces found at the Assyrian city of Ashur on the Tigris River in northern Iraq.
The final piece that I chose was from the Islamic Art Collection, highlight #15 of 50. It is a tin glazed and stained earthenware bowl, which is one of the first examples to incorporate Calligraphy as it's main element of decoration. It is a 19th Century bowl with the Aribic word "Ghibta" (happiness). It was found is Assisid and is attributed to Iraq.
I feel that art is an important historical tool because the techniques overlap from Century to Century. Today's methods are faster and easier but are still rooted in the efforts of past generations of craftspeople.