author
M. Louise (Mary Louise) McLaughlin
1847–1939
A pioneering force in American art pottery, this Cincinnati ceramic artist helped bring china painting and underglaze decoration to a wider audience. She also wrote practical, influential books that connected studio craft with everyday readers.
1 Audiobook
Pottery decoration under the glaze
by M. Louise (Mary Louise) McLaughlin
About the author
Born in Cincinnati in 1847, Mary Louise McLaughlin became one of the key figures in the American art pottery movement. She studied at the McMicken School of Design and built a reputation as a ceramic painter and studio potter at a time when women were opening new paths in the arts.
She is especially remembered for advancing underglaze decoration in the United States and for her role in Cincinnati's lively ceramics scene, where she is often discussed alongside Rookwood Pottery and its founder, Maria Longworth Nichols Storer. McLaughlin also helped found the Cincinnati Pottery Club, reflecting how active she was not just as an artist but as an organizer and advocate for the medium.
As an author, she wrote books including China Painting and Pottery Decoration under the Glaze, sharing hands-on knowledge with readers interested in ceramic art. She died in 1939, but her work still stands as part of the story of how American pottery became both an art form and a craft practice with a wide public following.