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Tall Narrow Vase with Cover

Artist/Maker (Canadian, 1929–2007)
Date1991
MediumPorcelain with Honan Tenmoku glaze
DimensionsOverall: 16 15/16 × 6 1/16 in. (43 × 15.4 cm)
Overall (lid): 15/16 × 4 15/16 in. (2.4 × 12.5 cm)
Overall (body): 16 1/8 × 6 1/16 in. (41 × 15.4 cm)
Credit LineGift of Sue and Bernie Pucker in honor of Dr. Sanford L. Palay (OC 1940)
Object number2001.8A-B
Status
On view
Copyright© Estate of Brother Thomas BezansonMore Information
A chance encounter with a book by Trappist monk and author Thomas Merton (1915–1968) inspired Thomas Bezanson to become a Benedictine monk in 1959. At the priory he began making ceramics to sell to visitors and aid the monastic community. From these humble beginnings, his art flourished and now appears in major museum collections worldwide. In his intense dedication to perfection, Bezanson reportedly destroyed ninety percent of his ceramic production—works that did not meet his high standards.

First exposed to East Asian ceramics at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, he later traveled to Japan to visit famous ceramic artists, and then to Taiwan to see Chinese ceramics from the former imperial collection. He then began to experiment with the Honan Tenmoku glaze recipe published by studio potter Bernard Leach (1887–1979), based on Chinese and Japanese black-glaze traditions. Bezanson made this glaze a part of his repertoire. He felt that his vessels shared with his East Asian predecessors a “continuity of spirit that is felt with and by all potters.”
Exhibition History
The Continuing Search for the Beautiful
  • Pucker Gallery, Boston ( 1991-09 - 1991-09 )
Conversations: Past and Present in Asia and America
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (July 12, 2016 - July 10, 2017 )
Inspirations: Global Dialogue Through the Arts
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (July 5, 2023 - May 31, 2025 )
Collections
  • Modern & Contemporary
  • On View