Mottpotts Studio Stoneware Covered Jar with Sculptural Looped Finial — Mesilla View Watchlist >
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Lot # G157
System ID # 30268317
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Mottpotts Studio Stoneware Covered Jar with Sculptural Looped Finial — Mesilla
Wheel-thrown stoneware covered jar from Mottpotts, the ceramic studio of Russell Mott and Kate Mott in Mesilla, New Mexico. The spherical body rises from a trimmed foot ring to a wide-brimmed flat lid topped with a sculptural twisted, hollow loop finial — a deliberate move beyond functional ware into sculpture. Dual-glaze decoration carries a matte mauve-rose over roughly half the surface and a semi-gloss celadon green across the remainder, the two fields separated by a deliberately exposed unglazed stoneware line that traces a diagonal arc across the vessel. The red-brown clay body shows warmly at the foot and the resist line. Impressed monogram stamps appear on both the vessel foot and the lid underside, reading "RM" and "KM" for Russell and Kate Mott — matched marks confirming this is a complete, original set.
Kate Mott (1947–2018) trained at the Rhode Island School of Design and studied architecture, a background that shows in the piece's confident proportion and the resolved geometry of the resist-line design. She and Russell owned and operated Mottpotts in Mesilla and MVS Studios in Las Cruces. The looped finial and controlled glaze break give this jar a strong studio-pottery character with genuine Mesilla Valley provenance.
History
Mottpotts was the working ceramic studio of Russell Mott and Kate Mott in Mesilla, New Mexico. Kate Mott was a lifelong visual artist, teacher, and mentor who trained at RISD before a long career across the region; a retrospective of her body of work was planned following her passing in 2018. Her studio output ties directly to the Mesilla/Las Cruces artistic community, giving pieces like this one a documented regional lineage that sets them apart from anonymous regional craft pottery.
CONDITION
Excellent, no damage. Glaze surfaces are clean and intact across body, lid, and finial; the exposed resist line and foot ring show the natural red-brown clay body as intended. Impressed maker stamps remain crisp on both foot and lid underside.
DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS
- Overall: 9" H × 8" Diameter
- Weight: 4 lbs
- Construction: Wheel-thrown stoneware, dual glaze with exposed resist line
- Marks: Impressed "RM" (Russell Mott) and "KM" (Kate Mott) on vessel foot and lid underside
- Studio: Mottpotts, Mesilla, New Mexico
