Exhibitions: Ceramics Made by Soldiers in Maryland USO Clubs

March 2, 1943: From to-morrow (Wednesday, March 3) through Sunday, March 21, the Brooklyn Museum will exhibit in its Entrance Hall ceramics made by soldiers at clubs in Maryland. About 30 items will be shown, the subject matter ranging from caricatures of sergeants to nudes of somewhat doubtful anatomy.

At its clubs throughout the country the USO has established arts-and-crafts classes in which Service Men try their hands at drawing, painting, wood-carving, modeling, etc. These classes have as teachers professional artists, some being local artists who have volunteered their services, other being artists in the Services. The popularity of these classes testifies to the men’s endorsement of the philosophy that creative work is one of the best mental tonics.

The USO clubs at Aberdeen and Edgewood, Md., have classes specializing in clay modeling because Miss Ethelmary Honore, a young artist of twenty-five, did not want “to work at a typewriter in some office” when priorities began cutting down materials for her own artistic career, and so she asked if she might start a class in pottery at the Aberdeen club. The class proved so popular at once that Miss Honore now has classes three times a week at USO clubs.

Miss Honore is the artist daughter of Paul Honore, well-known muralist, and lives with her parents on a farm near Port Deposit, Md.

Each class night Miss Honore goes to the club with a load of modeling clay, portable potter’s wheel and a few tools, and spends the evening teaching 30 to 100 soldiers some principles of pottery and sculpture.

The only complaint from her “pupils” that Miss Honore has to report is one concerning the absence of living models. However, as a rule problems of anatomy, human or animal, are solved by a majority opinion on “what to do next.”

The soldiers’ favorite subjects are lantern-jawed caricatures of their sergeants, with faces and heads the next most popular choices. Following in order come horses, cows, dogs and some strange creations of very un-natural history. Ash trays are also popular and usually are decorated with the men’s or their girl’s initials.

After class each night, Miss Honore takes the creations back to her home and fires them herself in the kiln in her studio. The finished products are returned to the neophyte artists at the next class and, frequently, are sent home or to the artists’ girls.

(NOTE: Photos available on request)

Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1942 - 1946. 01-03/1943, 033-4. View Original 1 . View Original 2