Three lettuce-leaf plates, two chicory vases, one celery stalk, one spring onion, one red chilli, one green chilli, one garlic clove, one green bean, one mushroom, one okra, one turnip one blackberry, one fig, one kumquat, two potatoes, two sweet potatoes, two onions, one tomato, one white gourd, one avocado, one sweet pea, one lemon bowl, one flowered leaf, one summer squash, one cucumber, one artichoke, one aubergine and one cauliflower; some signed 'Mary Kirk Kelly' and some dated
The plate 9¹⁄₃ in. (24.5 cm.) wide, and smaller

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This lot is offered by Christie Manson & Woods Ltd

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Lot Essay

Mary Kirk Kelly (1918-2013) lived in Axis, Alabama. In many ways, she reflected a gentility of a different era; however she was also a woman of keen curiosity, determination, independence and integrity. Yet, it was her creative gift that defines much of her legacy. Mary Kirk Kelly's hands shaped magic out of clay, beginning with objects made from the clay of Gunnison Creek for the delight of her children to serious ceramic studies for discerning collectors over the world. The following describes her process:"Both her artistry and painstaking attention to detail are obvious". Each work is made by hand from earthenware or porcelain clay in liquid form (slip). Kelly's hands sculpt the greenware, then paints it before bisque firing. After firing, she brushes or sponges metallic oxide colorants to capture the realism so highly prized by collectors.