Name: Acrylic and Ceramic David Gil Sculpture, circa 1951
Brand: Bennington Potters
Rating: 5 (65 reviews)

Acrylic and Ceramic David Gil Sculpture, circa 1951

View Similar Items

David Gil Ceramic Sculpture

David Gil for Bennington Potters Man's Face Ceramic Sculpture on Base

Studio Pottery Piggy Bank by David Gil and Yusuke Aida for Bennington Potters

David Gil Original Pottery Wall Sculpture

Whimsical Original Pottery Sculpture by David Gil of Bennington Artware Studio

Ivo De Santis for Gil Etruschi Ceramic Elephants Sculpture, Italy

Vintage Mid-Century Abstract Ceramic Plate by David Gil for Bennington Pottery

"Man with Bowler Hat" Stoneware Sculpture by David Gil for Bennington Pottery

David Gil large 12" ceramic vase " Spark " black rare by Bennington Pottery

David Gil for Bennington Potters Extra Large Vase

Whimsical Sun Face by Bennington Vermont Artist David Gil

About the Item

About The is an original sculpture by David Gil for Bennington Potters. A mid-century ceramic head with burnished screw eyes and leather tongue mounted on Lucite and a wooden base. Stamped in the back "Bennignton Potters Bennington VT DG 1951". The piece has retained its original finish and is in fair condition with appropriate patina for its age. A large crack is in the front and in the back. Lucite has some scratches. Creator David Gil (artist) Bennington Potters (manufacturer) Date of manufacture circa 1951 Materials and techniques ceramic, Lucite, wood. Condition fair. Wear consistent with age and use. Dimensions H 19.5 in. W 7.75 in. D 8 in. History Born David Goldfarb in 1922 in New York to immigrant parents, Gil grew up in Harlem, a multi-ethnic neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan. He took art and pottery classes in high school and was soon producing ceramics under the auspices of President Roosevelt’s arts-friendly Works Progress Administration. Although still a teenager, he was hired to sit at a wheel and throw pots in public as a craft demo for visitors to the World’s Fair in New York in 1939. He was enrolled from 1940-1942 and again from 1946-1948 at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. (In the intervening war years, he served as a merchant seaman.) With his first wife Gloria, he moved to Bennington after graduating, with plans to start a design studio. It was at this time that he changed his surname, perhaps to better blend into life in a traditional New England village. Design discovery through artistic collaboration was a driving force for Gil as he began his career, and in its first phase, the business (housed in an unheated barn) was the creative effort of a group of modern designers. They originally called the enterprise Cooperative Design, which Gil later changed to Bennington Potters. Gil won many national awards during the 1950s, and his works were exhibited internationally. In 1959 Gil’s tableware lines were picked up by Raymor, wellknown New York distributors of modern domestic products. (The company was also known as Richards, Morgenthau & Co.) Gil moved Bennington Potters to its current site on County Street, taking exceptional delight, recounts Harden, in rehabilitating forlorn wooden and brick supply buildings adjacent to a railroad spur. The complex grew to be a vast design showcase for Bennington’s production wares. In the mid-1960s, Gil’s was still in the news in major art periodicals. He was producing affordable limited edition ceramic items designed by some of America’s most famous mid-20th century artists. Despite little success with massmarketing the venture, Gil’s creative concepts placed him among the design trendsetters of the day. By the 1970s, wares from Bennington Potters were coveted and in many ways already legendary. The range of items designed and created by Gil during more than a half-century in his studio — including art pieces, prototypes, transition pieces and production runs of what would become Bennington’s “best sellers” — is nearly beyond cataloging. According to Harden, even the numbering system that the company began in the 1960s does not fully document or inventory the volume of work. Sheela Harden assumed her late husband’s corporate role as president and CEO of Bennington Potters after his unexpected death seven years ago. Still adhering to his philosophy of collaborative design, Harden works closely with talented ceramic artists and designers who are, as is she, fiercely loyal to Gil’s purpose. It is very likely the reason behind their continued success.

Creator:
Bennington Potters (Manufacturer)
Dimensions:
Height: 19.5 in (49.53 cm)Width: 7.75 in (19.69 cm)Depth: 8 in (20.32 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Ceramic,Leather,Lucite,Steel,Wood
Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
Mid-20th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1951
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Minor structural damages.
Seller Location:
San Francisco, CA
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1280212622112

More From This Seller

View All

Early 20th c. Plaster Cast Nose and Mouth Sculpture c.1900-1930

Located in San Francisco, CA

ABOUT Plaster cast nose and mouth sculptures mounted on black, wooden stands. Shown with life size hand model for scale. CREATOR Unknown. ...

Category

Mid-20th Century Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Plaster

Early 20th c. Plaster Cast Nose and Mouth Sculpture c.1900-1930

$225 / set

Mid-20th Century Carved Wooden Santo, circa 1950-1960

Located in San Francisco, CA

About A hand painted carved wooden Mexican or Central American Santo (saint) with articulating arms. Creator unknown. Date of manufacture circa 1...

Category

Antique 19th Century Mexican Industrial Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint

Mid-20th Century Carved Wooden Santo, circa 1950-1960

$175 Sale Price

32% Off

Early 19th Century Terracotta Bust with Glass Eyes, Circa1800-1840

Located in San Francisco, CA

About An early 19th century painted terracotta bust with glass eyes on wooden base. Creato Unknown. Date of manufacture circa1...

Category

Antique Early 19th Century American Victorian Figurative Sculptures

Materials

Wood, Paint

Early 19th Century Terracotta Bust with Glass Eyes, Circa1800-1840

$1,165 Sale Price

22% Off

Antique Cast Iron Boston Terrier Doorstop by Hubley, circa 1910-1940

By Hubley Manufacturing Company 2

Located in San Francisco, CA

ABOUT This is an original cast iron Boston Terrier doorstop manufactured by the Hubley Manufacturing Company in Lancaster Pennsylvania USA. The piece has retained its original hand ...

Category

Early 20th Century Industrial Animal Sculptures

Materials

Iron

Antique Cast Iron Boston Terrier Doorstop by Hubley, circa 1910-1940

$470

David Faulk, Titled Aeschelina, Acrylic on Paper 1984

Located in San Francisco, CA

DAVID FAULK, TITLED AESCHELINA, ACRYLIC ON PAPER 1984 ABOUT David Faulk original artwork acrylic on paper, titled Aeschelina. The work was made in 1984 in Florence, Italy. • CRE...

Category

Late 20th Century Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

David Faulk, Titled Aeschelina, Acrylic on Paper 1984

$150 Sale Price

37% Off

Mahogany and Bronze German Shepherd Bookends c.1940

Located in San Francisco, CA

ABOUT An original pair of bronze plate German Shepherd bookends mounted on Mahogany bases with original felt and label. CREATOR Littco Products. DATE OF MANUFACTURE c.194...

Category

Early 20th Century American Industrial Bookends

Materials

Bronze

Located in Hopewell, NJ

Distinctive David Gil whimsical ceramic face sculpture that conjures “Picasso”, using negative space imaginatively. Mounted on custom painted wood stand.

Category