Milwaukee Art Museum Returns David Drake Stoneware Jars to Descendants
The Milwaukee Art Museum has returned two stoneware vessels created by Dave (David) Drake, a 19th-century ceramic artist, to his descendants under an ownership transfer agreement that allows for their long-term exhibition. Born around 1801 into slavery on a plantation in the Carolinas, Drake inscribed his name and poetic verses on the large jars, defying the anti-literacy laws of the antebellum South. Yaba Baker, Drake's fourth great-grandson, stated that this agreement honors Drake's legacy, which has persisted for over 175 years. Known as Dave the Potter, he was brought to Edgefield, South Carolina, by Harvey Drake and Abner Landrum, where he became a master potter despite the risks associated with learning to read and write.
Key facts
- The Milwaukee Art Museum returned two 19th-century stoneware vessels by Dave (David) Drake to his descendants.
- An ownership transfer agreement allows the objects to be displayed long-term.
- Drake was born into slavery around 1801 on a plantation in the Carolinas.
- Harvey Drake and Abner Landrum brought him as a late teen to their pottery business in Edgefield, South Carolina.
- Edgefield was the epicenter of ceramic production in the American South during the 19th century.
- Drake inscribed his name and brief poems on the jars despite anti-literacy laws in the antebellum South.
- South Carolina's Negro Act of 1740 instituted anti-literacy laws for enslaved and free African Americans.
- Yaba Baker, Drake's fourth great-grandson, said the agreement recognizes Drake as an ancestor whose voice, expertise, and creativity have endured for over 175 years.
Entities
Artists
- Dave (David) Drake
- Yaba Baker
- Harvey Drake
- Abner Landrum
- David Drake
- Pauline Baker
- Kantara Souffrant
- Glenn Adamson
- Anya Sesay
- Jori Finkel
- Ella Feldman
- Geoff Bennett
- Sonja Anderson
Institutions
- Milwaukee Art Museum
- Dave the Potter Legacy Trust
- Chipstone Foundation
- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- New York Times
- Smithsonian magazine
- PBS News
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Georgia Museum of Art
Locations
- Milwaukee
- United States
- Edgefield
- South Carolina
- Carolinas
- Boston
- Georgia
- Wisconsin
- Chicago
- Cape Cod