1. The Young Mother
THE YOUNG MOTHER
By Frederick W. Freer
(Would impression remain with drapery removed?)
Probably no one has ever seriously taken up the consideration of Oriental ceramics without, at least, feeling the alluring charm with which it has enthralled its thousands. It appeals to all. The exquisite forms of the pieces - I am quoting here my own words, used elsewhere - at once arrest the attention of those whose tastes incline to modeling or sculpturing, while the limitless decorations call up all the imaginative powers of the painter. The artisan is arrested by the methods of manufacture, so primitive, yet producing the highest degree of perfection.
The chemist attempts to elucidate scientifically what accumulated experience has placed before the uneducated Oriental. The geologists can employ a lifetime of research into the materials of manufacture. The archaeologist, the historian, in fact any one, whatever his hobby, will find ample scope for expansion among the modern as well as ancient productions of the justly famous Oriental kilns.
The story of ceramic art is lost in the early mists of history. Apparently, most of the early nationalities have produced at least crude earthenware, but the Chinese were certainly the discoverers of the art of making porcelain, and from the place of its origin it eventually became known throughout China and her dependencies, of which Korea was one. Japan learned from China and Korea.