Harding Black Pottery Tile Woman Grinding Corn

This colorful art pottery tile was made by Harding Black (1912-2004). The front of the tile is carved and depicts a woman grinding corn on her metate in front of some large oil jars. Measures 5 3/4" square. Very good condition, with a flake on the edge of top right corner. Not viewable from the front. Unsigned.

Harding Black is the Mueller Mosaic of San Jose Tile.

Harding Black was born in San Antonio, Texas, in 1912. Black had no formal training, but learnt wheel-throwing from fellow American potter Rudi Staffel in 1933. Inspired by Native American pottery, be began hand-building earthenware in early 1932 and developed a distinguished career that spanned more than six decades.

In 1933 he was appointed ceramics instructor at the Witte Museum Archaeological Society, where he established a ceramics department. In the 1940s he became inspired by Bernard Leach's A Potter's Book and oriental pottery and worked with glazes formulated by Arthur Baggs and Edgar Littlefield.

Black established his own studio in San Antonio, Texas in the 1950s. His earliest work was coil-built. Later works were wheel-thrown, slip-cast or press molded. Black has become known as a glaze master after many years of research. He retired from pottery in the late 1990s. 7