Collection Highlights

Henry’s Teapots
These two works of art were both acquired from the estate of the influential art critic, historian, and collector Henry Geldzahler (1935-1994). Geldzahler began his career as a student in the Harvard Fine Arts Department, but left before completing his doctorate to become a curatorial

Tea on the Frontier: Geology in the Kamm Teapot Collection
Writing in his diary on Sunday, September 27th, 1869, William Henry Jackson explained that, “after his afternoon tea, he went to the depot to see the Western train come in and sell quite a few photographs.” Jackson, known as one of America’s most important nineteenth

Jules Feiffer Teapot Drawing
This drawing was commissioned by the Kamm Teapot Foundation from cartoonist and writer Jules Feiffer. Feiffer has drawn and written for numerous projects, including his long-running syndicated comic strip Feiffer and the illustrations for The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. He has won many awards

Radiant Energy: Teapot Jewelry
This small sculpture by contemporary jeweler Leah Meleski (American, b. 1985) is a clever use of the teapot form as wearable art. The sculpture is actually composed of a set of jewelry. It disassembles into two bracelets from the teapot handle and body, an earring

T-Pot by Garry Knox Bennett
This sculpture is an example of an artwork made specifically for the Kamm Teapot Foundation. As patrons of the arts, Foundation trustees Sonny and Gloria Kamm make a point to commission contemporary artists to make a teapot for the collection, and especially seek works from

Teapot Dome Memorabilia
The Kamm Teapot Collection has several artifacts from the early 1920s about political corruption in the Republican administration of President Warren G. Harding. The Teapot Dome scandal concerned the backroom leasing of public oil reserves and took its name from the oil field near Teapot

Yixing Candle Teapot
This teapot is an example of Yixing (also spelled YiXing) pottery, from the Yixing region in the Jiangsu province of China. This particular teapot, made of dark teal, unglazed stoneware in the form of a melting candle, won a prize at the International Ceramics Competition

High Tea Diorama
This diorama of two bears drinking tea together was created as a window dressing for the jewelry company Tiffany & Co., by the window dresser and illustrator Robert Heitmann (American, b. 1922). Heitmann created whimsical, seasonal window decorations for Tiffany & Co. from the mid

Thom Atkins When Pigs Fly
This large teapot sculpture was created by the quilter and bead artist Thom Atkins, and takes the form of a pig riding a winged-dragon. In this sculpture, the spout of the teapot is formed from the open mouth of the dragon, while the handle is

Park Hall Teapot
This teapot was decorated by the renowned porcelain painter William Billingsley (British, 1758-1828). Billingsley began his career working for Royal Crown Derby, though later worked for many other manufacturers, as well as his own pottery factory at one time, and his own decorating business in

Gladys Nilsson Grey Bros. 4zz’s
This painting is by the contemporary American artist Gladys Nilsson, who is known for her colorful, often surreal figurative watercolor paintings. She currently teaches painting at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). During the 1960s and 70s, Nilsson was a part of

Hidden Identitea
Laura (Red) Weldon Sandlin (American, b. 1958) Hidden Identitea 2009 ceramic, painted wood 20.5 x 22.2 x 9.5” Photos: John Polak, courtesy of the Ferrin Gallery. 2009.51.14[/caption] This teapot sculpture is by the contemporary ceramicist Laura, or “Red,” Weldon Sandlin. Sandlin was born in Owensboro,