Majolica Mania: Transatlantic Pottery in England and the United States, 1850–1915 is the first comprehensive study of the most important ceramic innovation of the nineteenth century. Colorful, wildly imaginative, and technically innovative, majolica was both functional and aesthetic. Its subject matter reflects a range of Victorian preoccupations, from botany and zoology to popular humor and the macabre. Majolica Mania examines the medium’s considerable impact, from wares used in domestic settings to monumental pieces shown at the world’s fairs. Essays by international experts address the extensive output of the originators and manufacturers in England—including Minton, Wedgwood, and George Jones—and the migration of English craftsmen to the United States. New research including information on important American makers is also featured. Fully illustrated, the book is enlivened by new photography of pieces from major museums and private collections in the United States and Great Britain.

The exhibition Majolica Mania is on view at Bard Graduate Center Gallery from September 24, 2021 through January 2, 2022.