# Grotesque Vase

- By: Christopher Dresser (Made by Ault Pottery (Swadlincote, Derbyshire, England, 1887-1923))
- Date: c. 1893
- Medium: Lead-glazed earthenware
- Classification: Ceramics
- Dimensions: 26.6 × 19.7 cm (10 7/16 × 7 3/4 in.)
- Culture: Swadlincote
- Credit line: Purchased with funds provided by Quinn E. Delaney
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/158983)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/075d4113-a69a-dbb1-8336-3f7adaec09c3/full/!1812,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Towards the end of his career, Ault Pottery contracted Christopher Dresser to produce innovative vases and other forms for the new firm. One of his most iconic designs for Ault was this vase featuring stylized goat heads perched on elongated hooved legs. This humorous vase was part of a series of brightly colored vessels with handles constructed of grotesquely proportioned animals or humans. Grotesques are monstrous figures, such as those portrayed in stone on medieval cathedrals, which may have served as a source of inspiration for this unusual design.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0