“The moment one picks up one of these objects to read it, one is already partly enveloped in that aura of home and hearth, and so one drops one’s defenses and is perhaps more receptive to the message the object contains.” Garth Clark, The Artful Teapot, 189.

On October 15th, 27 top American ceramic artists will unveil a diverse group of cups, plates and other pots called "Obamaware" as a fundraiser for Barack Obama's presidential campaign. What a great idea! A convergence of the handmade aesthetic beloved by progressive Americans, a 'green' object you can use over and over, and a way to support the arts during difficult economic times. What better way to support the candidate for change? It turns out that the Obamaware artists are in good company - some of the most fascinating episodes in ceramic history testify to the subtle but enduring power of pots to convey both food and ideas. Ancient Greek potters used scenes from well-known myths to comment on Athenian politics. One 16th century German potter decorated a jar with imagery that promoted controversial new Protestant beliefs - and went to jail for it. Pots have long played an important supporting role in conversations about politics in the domestic realm, or as politicians like to say, "around the kitchen table".

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Sarah Archer is the Director of Greenwich House Pottery in NYC. She received her BA from Swarthmore College and has an MA in the history of decorative arts from the Bard Graduate Center. Sarah has worked at Price Glover, a New York antiques firm with a specialization in 18th Century British and American decorative arts, and during graduate school she was an intern with Garth Clark Gallery. She was a curatorial assistant at the Museum of Arts and Design before joining GHP. Her writing has appeared in Ceramics: Art and Perception.