A Teacup Collection: Paintings of Porcelain Treasures

By Kathleen Morris and Molly Hatch

In paintings as pretty as the porcelain they depict, this gift book celebrates one of the finest teacup collections in the world: the 300-piece archive of the Clark Art Institute, which dates back to the eighteenth century and represents coveted designs of the day from Europe and China. Artist Molly Hatch, with exclusive access to this largely unviewed collection, pored over the details of each cup to create this visual treat. Including page after page of paintings of the cups, and led off by introductory essays, this is both an intriguing reflection on the art of collecting and an utterly charming gift for tea drinkers and teacup collectors.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chronicle Books Digital
• Release date: Mar 17, 2015
• ISBN: 9781452139753

Kathleen Morris

I love to write both fiction and non-fiction. I've been writing for over 30 years and love to dream up characters or write personal interest stories. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't write. It is both my outlet and my therapy. I love it dearly!

Book preview

For my mother and her love of art and tea.

Introduction and artwork copyright © 2015 by Molly Hatch.

The Art of Procuring Porcelain copyright © 2015 by Kathleen Morris.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form

without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available.

ISBN: 978-1-4521-3433-8 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4521-3975-3 (epub, mobi)

Book design by Kristen Hewitt

Chronicle Books LLC

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San Francisco, CA 94107

www.chroniclebooks.com

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

By Molly Hatch

6

THE ART OF PROCURING PORCELAIN

By Kathleen Morris

9

THE COLLECTION

17

GLOSSARY

118

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

120

INTRODUCTION

By Molly Hatch

Everyone has a favorite cup or mug. It fits nicely in your hand, it holds exactly the right amount of liquid—it is as though it were made just for you.

Cups are such a consistent part of our everyday life. They sit unassuming, waiting to be used, washed, and used again. But there is a moment in which we focus on the cups in our cabinets more than at most any other moment: when we pause to contemplate which cup to use. It is in that moment we consider the cup. When I go to my cabinet each morning to choose a cup for my coffee, I am often tickled by how a cup can spark a memory of the potter who made it and the story behind how I acquired it. The