Colonoware 6/19 collection
Colonoware is a type of earthenware once created by African Americans in enslaved communities. It has been found fragmented in pieces, broken beneath the soils of former plantation sites. These sites are primarily located in the Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. It has also been uncovered in points north and south from Delaware to Florida and as far west as Tennessee and Kentucky.
Colonoware as material culture is the result of cultural exchange between indigenous and enslaved populations. Most of it was produced for practical use such as bowls for eating or serving and jugs and crocks presumably for water or preserving. They were primarily creations of function and necessity for enslaved Africans to dine from in their communities during the colonial period. Some pieces have been discovered to have been marked with signatures or marks of designation. Dave the Potter, a known maker, marked his pieces with his signature. We have used an “X” for our interpretations. We learned that the X symbol was used for colonoware specific for medicine and healing on plantation sites in South Carolina where my ancestors were enslaved. (source; Working Cures: Healing, Health, and Power on Southern Slave Plantations, Sharla M. Fett, 2000)
We created interpretations of the tablewares, including cups molded by Omar’s wife, Cybille’s hands to elucidate the act of deliverance of healing. Omar notes the act of piecing together his personal histories within the larger contexts of Black America has been a reconciliatory and healing journey thus far. In this offering we hope to share this with you.
Colonoware has only begun being researched and studied in the 1960’s.The fragmented pieces give insight into what life was like on plantations. Across all sites where it’s been found there have rarely been instances where the items were traced back to any of its actual producers. The pieces “untitled vessel” and “Cybille’s Medicine Cup” were presented during Omar’s residency at Stone Barns Center for Agriculture and Research in 2021 and developed as a part of his continuing education of colonoware as material and object history.
In collaboration with Gregg Moore and Heirloom Studio this year we are reproducing 19 sets of ceramic “untitled vessel” plates and 19 sets of “Cybille’s Medicine Cup” for Juneteenth to mark this point in our continued research of this material. These sets are all individual and will only be available this year. They are all signed with the healing X and dated 6/19 by Omar Tate; each piece is a one of one. We are also giving away 19 sets of Cybille’s Medicine Cups to community members at Bailey Street Books to the first 19 neighbors who come by to receive them on [TBD] date.
