Peeler Pottery

Richard and Marj Peeler fired a kiln for 28 years in their unique ceramics studio in the middle of rural Indiana. They produced a quarter million pieces of pottery from the mid 1970s through the early 1990s, while raising their four sons. People from every state in the country and from 51 different countries had visited their studio in Putnam County, where they made 10,000 pottery pieces a year. In addition to utilitarian pottery, the Peelers also made one-of-a-kind sculptural pieces. Their work was a skillful expression of creativity and imagination that appealed to people from all walks of life. Although popular and successful in selling their pottery pieces, the Peelers didn't treat pottery as a commercial enterprise, but rather as a work of art.

Richard taught ceramics, sculpture, crafts, and photography at DePauw University for 14 years. The University’s new art center, Richard E. Peeler Art Center, is named after him as a tribute to the talented and inspiring teacher.

Throughout the years, Richard and Marj wrote numerous educational articles for ceramic art magazines, including Pottery Making Illustrated and Ceramics Monthly, as well as made instructional ceramic art films. Richard was a founding member of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) and served as the Council’s president from 1969 to 1970.

In 2007, Marj curated an exhibit of Peeler pottery at the Putnam County Museum. Two thousand pottery pieces were collected for the exhibit. Dr. Warren Macy, the Museum’s president at the time, organized three “Peeler Pottery Parties,” inviting private collectors to bring their Peeler pieces to showcase and have them photographed. The public’s interest and enthusiasm about Peeler pottery led to a publication of Peeler Pottery: A Retrospective, a 342-page book containing 756 color photos of the Peelers’ work, with an inspiring personal introduction by Marj. In her essay, Marj describes challenges and rewards along with techniques and knowledge she and her late husband developed as they worked in their studio. It is an engaging story, with bits of history and advice for any aspiring artist, and the colorful photographs bring the artwork and the studio to life.