Donald E. Frith
Donald Eugene Frith (/friTH/ /frɪθ/; September 16, 1924 – January 6, 2021) was an American ceramic artist known for his unique style of teapots, mixing ceramics with acrylics and wood.[1] He was one of the first artists that made a three point handle teapot. An early example of the "three handle teapot" was pictured in the ceramics book A Potter’s Handbook.[2] He specialized in production design work, with his knowledge of molds. He wrote the book Mold Making for Ceramics ISBN 0801975395 Search this book on 
.. This book became the definitive reference worldwide on mold making.
Early life and education[edit]
Frith was born in Denver, Colorado. He received his BFA in 1949 and MA from Denver University. He was awarded on two occasions a Danforth Foundation grant to study at the Alfred University where he received his Master of Fine Arts in 1966. [1]
Career[edit]
A World War II veteran, Frith served in the U.S. Navy as a Sea-bee in the South Pacific.
In 1952 he started as Assistant Professor of Ceramics and Jewelry at the University of Illinois, where he was a professor emeritus head of the Arts and Crafts Department for 40 years. Frith was Chair of the Crafts Program, University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana starting the glass, metals and ceramics programs. He also was a product designer for three pottery company's, one was McCoy (pottery) of Zanesville, Ohio.
Frith served as founding member of the Illinois Crafts Council and the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). His office at the University of Illinois served as the National office for NCECA for 10 years. He initiated the Stare exhibition while he was President of the North Central Region of the American Craft Council.
In 1966 the American Craft Council awarded him a National Merit Award[citation needed] and in 1971 he was awarded Fellow of the Council by NCECA. He has served as officer of the Design Division Award for outstanding contribution to the field. He was elected to the board of Trustees of the American Ceramic Society to serve three year term in 1986. In 1991 he was awarded Fellow of the Society by the American Ceramic Society.
2009, Nov. 6-8 Donald showed his teapots at SOFA Chicago. Del Mano Gallery - 11981 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049, is the last gallery that sold his work. Santa Barbara News-Press pg. A6 Mon. Apr.10, 2017 did a great article called "Orcutt's Renaissance Man", written by Dave Mason. "Donald Frith: "A Master in Porcelain" is titled in Art News of the San Louis Obispo, CA.[3]
Frith's work is in many permanent collections, including the Art Museum of the University of Georgia, Contemporary Crafts Museum in New York City, Lakeview Art Center in Peoria, Illinois, The Art Institute of Chicago, Saint Louis Art Museum, Krannert Art Museum, U of I, Illinois State Museum, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, Evansville Museum of Arts, History and Science, Museum of Arts and Design, New York City.[citation needed]
Commercial work[edit]
In his capacity as product designer for three pottery companies,[which?] Professor Frith designed many item that were nationally distributed. In June 1996, Ceramics Monthly magazine featured one of his covered jars on the front cover. Look featured one of these designs in the centerfold advertisement.
In 1997 Frith was commissioned by the newly consecrated Bishop of Peoria, Illinois to design his official Bishopric ring.[citation needed] The created ring in 18K yellow and white gold incorporated a coat of arms, a latin motto, a large pearl, rubies and diamonds.
The International Executive Service Corps has called on Professor Frith to serve five consulting assignments; two in South Korea, one in Bogota Columbia, South America, on in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and one in Cap Haitian Haiti. The assignments had to do with design and production technology. In 1997 Frith was asked to give a thee-week workshop at the University of Technology MARA in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
In 1983 Frith contracted with the Chilton Book Co to produce the book, Mold Making for Ceramics ISBN 0801975395 Search this book on .. The book appeared on the market in 1985 and immediately became the definitive reference worldwide on mold making.
Inventions[edit]
Frith invented two patents: a shrink compensating calculator and a calculator that measures the amounts for plaster variables.
He had a late 1950s patent on a small, single-head, rotary electric razor, but he wasn't able to market it.
In 1999, he obtained a patent for his Supersafe Mixer, which artists use to safely mix clay. It has no sharp blades.
Personal life[edit]
He met his wife Barbara Tepfer at Denver University, and they married in 1949.[1] They had four children (Eugenia Meltzer, Martin Frith, Johanna Sholder, and Julie Frith Psyclones ) and lived in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois.[1] He and Barbara move to Santa Maria, California to retire. Barbara Frith died Dec. 21, 2007.[4] Donald died on January 6, 2021 age 96 in Goleta, CA.[1]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Donald E. Frith". Santa Maria Times. January 24, 2021. Retrieved 2021-02-22.
- ↑ Nelson, Glenn C. (1960). A Potter’s Handbook. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc. p. 112. ISBN 0305589059. Search this book on
- ↑ San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (PDF) https://sloma.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/ArtNews_Sep-Oct_2017_Full.pdf. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "A. Barbara Frith". The News-Gazette. January 9, 2008. Retrieved 2021-02-26.
External links[edit]
- Interview with Donald Frith
- Donald E. Frith On Making A Teapot, Part One
- Donald E. Frith On Making A Teapot, Part Two
Donald E. Frith[edit]
This article "Donald E. Frith" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Donald E. Frith. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
- Blanked or modified
- 1924 births
- 2021 deaths
- American potters
- University of Illinois faculty
- People from Denver, Colorado
- Artists from Illinois
- 20th-century ceramists
- 20th-century American artists
- 21st-century ceramists
- 21st-century American artists
- American male artists
- Alfred University Alumni
- American pottery
- McCoy (pottery)
