Churn, Thomas Chandler, Baltimore Maryland United States of America, stoneware –salt-glazed, 1829, The William C. and Susan S. Mariner Collection, Ac_5813.47

Daniel Ackermann, Director, Bayou Bend Collection & Gardens

The William C. and Susan S. Mariner Southern Ceramics Gallery is home to the most comprehensive collection of antebellum pottery made in Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

Among the decorative arts, pottery is the one media that is most intimately connected to place.  The southern pottery in this gallery reflects the interplay between maker, consumer, culture, and geography.  It is a tangible reflection of how potters responded to specific cultural needs to craft vessels out of local materials that were both useful and beautiful.  Visit the gallery virtually via this link.

Jug, Augustin Mareschal (Marshall), Fairhope or Montrose, Baldwin County Alabama United States of America, salt-glazed stoneware, 1830-1850, MESDA purchase fund, in honor of Joey Brackner, Acc_6094

The William C. and Susan S. Mariner Southern Ceramics Gallery at MESDA

Daniel Ackermann currently serves as the Director of the Bayou Bend Collection & Gardens at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, a position held since July 2024. Previously, Daniel held various roles at Old Salem Museums & Gardens from September 2007 to July 2024, culminating in the position of Chief Curator and Director of Collections, Research, and Archaeology. Earlier experience includes serving as the Tiffany & Co. Foundation Curatorial Intern in American Decorative Arts at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and working as a Professional Numismatist and Auctioneer at Heritage Auctions. Daniel Ackermann earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Art History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a Master’s degree in Architectural History and Preservation from the University of Virginia, and a Bachelor’s degree in History, specializing in Public History and Material Culture from William & Mary.