Stan Bitters Mural
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
Recent Sales
2010s American Organic Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Steel
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Mounted Objects
Ceramic
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Ceramic
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Decorative Art
Ceramic
Vintage 1960s American Brutalist Decorative Art
Terracotta
Vintage 1970s American Wall-mounted Sculptures
Early 2000s American Mid-Century Modern Contemporary Art
Steel
People Also Browsed
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Metal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
Plaster
2010s South African Minimalist Pedestals
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
Brass
Mid-20th Century Swedish Brutalist Beds and Bed Frames
Pine
20th Century Indian Mid-Century Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Brass
2010s French Modern Table Lamps
Ceramic
20th Century American Space Age Lounge Chairs
Fabric, Carbon Fiber
2010s South African Minimalist Pedestals
Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Chairs
Plastic
Late 20th Century Belgian Brutalist Cabinets
Oak
2010s French Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Fabric, Wood
2010s Italian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Alabaster, Brass
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
Leather, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary American Art Deco Sofas
Steel
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Fabric, Walnut
Stan Bitters for sale on 1stDibs
An icon of modernist ceramics since the 1960s, Stan Bitters constructed rough assemblages of clay slabs and spoked wheels into massive murals and tall totems, upsizing his medium to an architectural scale.
Like Toshiko Takaezu, Peter Voulkos, Paul Soldner and others, Bitters was part of a small group of American artists during the mid-20th-century who embraced imperfection in their pottery.
Working in ceramics, a material that during the last 100 years was relegated to the supposedly lesser artistic realm of craft, Bitters and these other artists made bold, chunky pieces that served as a counterpoint to the smooth lines and overall slickness of modern and postmodern movements like Bauhaus, constructivism, minimalism, Op art and Pop art.
Hailing from Fresno, California, the self-proclaimed “old hippie” Bitters earned his bachelor’s degree in painting from UCLA. He also studied at what became Otis College in Los Angeles under Voulkos — the bad boy of American ceramics.
Voulkos almost single-handedly spawned what came to be known as the California Clay Movement and flouted pottery’s approved techniques. He transformed clay into a vibrant, highly expressive artistic medium, and Bitters’ funky, fractured style certainly shows it.
Bitters later became associated with organic modernism and created ceramics for Hans Sumpf, a maker of adobe bricks and furniture in Madera.
“Known for his Abstract Expressionist style, Bitters is a steadfast champion of environmental ceramics — the melding of natural, organic clay forms, sculptures and architectural elements into urban spaces to complement, transform and elevate their surroundings,” says Greg Nielson, of Dwell Floor Five, in Studio City, California.
With their sputtery glazes and graffiti-esque glyphs, Bitters’s works exude raw, countercultural energy.
Find Stan Bitters decorative objects, garden ornaments, planters and other furniture for sale on 1stDibs.