Presented by David Barquist, H. Richard Dietrich Jr. Curator of American Decorative Arts
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA
Dr. David Barquist, world renowned expert, will chronicle the history of porcelain table wares owned and used by American presidents and their families for public and private dining. As part of the most highly visible household in the nation, the presidential china in the McNeil Americana Collection offers an overview of the changing styles, tastes, and modes of entertaining across four centuries of American history, from George Washington to Ronald Reagan. The lecture will also look at the changes over time in the ceramics available to fashion-conscious Americans, from goods imported from China and Europe to domestically-made products.

Presented by Suzanne Marchand, Ph.D.
Boyd Professor, Department of History
Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA

Tour of private ceramic collection, by reservation only.

Presented by R. Ruthie Dibble, Ph.D.
The Robert N. Shapiro Curator of American Decorative Art, Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA
While the Peabody Essex Museum is known for its Chinese export porcelain, the museum also stewards an important, fascinating, and lesser known collection of ceramics from England, Europe, New England, and the broader Americas. This talk will highlight the rich and varied ceramics that fall under PEM’s American Decorative Art department and explore the intersection of trade and collecting, artistry and industry, that shapes each pot and the collection as a whole.