The Mad Potter
Some people are so far ahead of their time that it takes a long time for the rest of the world to catch up to them. It took the world more than 50 years to catch up to “The Mad Potter” — George E. Ohr — and in some ways, it is still trying to.
As is the case with many brilliantly creative people, the work of this innovative Arts and Crafts ceramics artist of Biloxi, Mississippi, was not appreciated in his own time. Although this disappointed him enough to eventually stop creating pottery, Ohr boldly predicted two big things: his work would become highly valued as art by a later generation, and the nation would build a temple to his genius. He was right about both. It just took awhile to get there.
Ohr would likely be quite happy to know that some of his pieces have sold for six figures, including one of his large and exceptional vessels that sold at auction earlier this year.
A passionate Ohr connoisseur, David Rago, whose Rago Arts and Auction Center sold the $100,000 vessel in January, wasn’t expecting it to blow way past its estimate of $20,000-$30,000, but it’s a standout piece. It came close to beating the auction record currently held by Sotheby’s for a piece that sold for $125,000 more than 10 years ago.
“I was certainly surprised it brought that much, but it was special in ways I initially didn’t understand,” said Rago. “Two nights before the sale, we had a lecture at the auction hall on Ohr and were shown a period photo of
