Donald Reitz
Don Reitz is best known for sculptural pieces that grew out ofwheel-thrown functional work that is characterized by symmetry and simple lines.
Reitz began salt firing while at Alfred and then pursued a ...
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Typical Marks
About
- Biography
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Don Reitz is best known for sculptural pieces that grew out ofwheel-thrown functional work that is characterized by symmetry and simple lines.
Reitz began salt firing while at Alfred and then pursued a life-long investigation of salt and wood firing that almost single-handedly revived these neglected techniques. His work shows the results of this study. He used various slips and oxides to achieve surfaces that run from dry to slick, and carry colors previously unknown in wood-fired pieces. Examples of his use of color are the pieces he created as a result of an auto accident and the illness of niece, Sara, after whom he named this series. The pieces in this series are typically composed of a chalk white area with bright red, yellow and blue contrasted against an unglazed area.
An interview with Don Reitz conducted June 6 and 7, 2006 by Mija Riedel for the Archives of American Art?s Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America is available from http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-don-reitz-13546.
" - Apprenticeships & Residencies
- Primary Work Experience
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1962-1988
Faculty, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
Other
- Public Collections
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Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, Alfred University, Alfred, New York
American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California
Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas
Arizona State University Art Museum, Tempe, Arizona
Brandt’s Kloedefabrik, Odenese, Denmark
Belger Arts Center, Kansas City, Missouri
Canton Museum of Art, Canton, Ohio
Chasen Museum of Art, Madison, Wisconsin
Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, Ohio
Contemporary Art Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii
Daum Museum of Contemporary Art, Sedalia, Missouri
de Young Museum, San Francisco, California
Erishu Art Museum, Himeji, Japan
Gilmore Art Center, Kalamazoo, Missouri
High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia
Horikodden Art Center, Oslo, Norway
Houston Museum of Art, Houston, Texas
Hunter Museum of Art, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Kutztown State University, Kutztown, Pennsylvania
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles, California
Milwaukee Museum of Art, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina
Mudgee Art Museum, Mudgee, Australia
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts
Nippon Castle Research Center, Himeji, Japan
Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art,Utah State University, Logan, Utah
Palmerston University, Palmerston, North New Zealand
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Renwick Gallery, Washington, D.C.
Smithsonian Institution, Building of Science and Industry, Washington, D.C.
Tweed Museum of Art, Duluth, Minnesota
Udinotti Museum of Figurative Art, Scottsdale, Arizona
Weismann Art Museum, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Bibliography
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Clowes, Jody. Don Reitz: Clay, Fire, Salt, and Wood. Madison, WI: Chazen Museum of ArtJun 20, 2005
Don Reitz, et al. The Soul of a Bowl. Portland, OR: Crafts Museum & Gallery.
Hendricks, Charles, et al. “Salt Glaze Ceramics by Don Reitz,” New York, NY: American Crafts Council, 1972.
Levin, Elaine. The History of American Ceamics from Pipkins and Bean Pots to Contemporary Forms. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1988.
Nordness, Lee. Objects:USA. New York, NY: The Viking Press, 1970.
- CV or Resume
- Download CV or Resume Download CV or Resume
- Website(s)
Citation: Donald Reitz, "The Marks Project."
Last modified April 29, 2026. https://www.themarksproject.org/artists/donald-reitz
Objects
Collections
American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA)
Pomona, California
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American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA)
Pomona, California -
American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA)
Pomona, California -
American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA)
Pomona, California
