Blue & White: A Ceramic Journey

The Denver Art Museum presents a collection of "blue-and-white" ceramics.

The term “blue-and-white” is applied to a wide range of ceramics with this distinctive color combination. In Asia, the production of blue-and-white wares involves decorating an unfired clay object with cobalt pigment, covering it with a transparent glaze, and firing it in a kiln. The cobalt deepens in color, the clay body hardens, and the glaze vitrifies into a glass-like surface. Since the blue design lies on the white exterior of the clay object beneath the glaze, it is protected and resistant to abrasion. "Blue & White: A Ceramic Journey" explores the many ways this familiar style has been used through the centuries and highlights regional variations in production and imagery from around the world. Over six hundred years of blue-and-white artworks are on display, ranging from 15th century Muslim pieces, to contemporary Japanese sculptures.