1998.123 Russel Wright, "American Modern” celery dish, c. 1937

During the late 1930s, Russel Wright combined the notion of mix-and-match solid colors with innovative organic shapes that foreshadowed post-World War II design. In 1937, Wright and his wife, Mary, designed American Modern, a line that included early examples of coupe plates and hollowware pieces with biomorphic forms. In fact, the Wrights' creation was so radical that two years elapsed before a pottery agreed to produce it. In 1939, the then-bankrupt Steubenville Pottery Company began production of the line in four colors developed by students of Donald Schreckengost at Alfred University - Chartreuse Curry, Granite Grey, Seafoam Green, and Bean Brown - and eventually offered seven additional colors. 

American Modern was one of the best-selling tableware lines of all time. In production between 1939 and 1959, it grossed an estimated $150 million and prompted Steubenville Pottery Company to expand twice to maintain pace with demand. 

Charles L. Venable, China and Glass in America 1880-1980 (Dallas, TX: Dallas Museum of Art: New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 2000), 349, 425. 

Until 1998: Mr. and Mrs. S. Roger Horchow, Dallas, Texas [1]

From 1998: Dallas Museum of Art, gift of the above [1]

[1] See Dallas Museum of Art Deed of Gift (dated August 6, 1998, copy in Collections Records Object File). 

Khan Academy~Read an essay on Russel Wright’s American Modern dinnerware line. 

Apply to objects where number equals 1998.123