Gerald Williams ’47

Potter, educator, and New Hampshire’s first Artist Laureate Gerald Williams ’47 died Aug. 24, 2014. He was 88.

Williams, who was born in New Dehli, India, in 1926, came to Cornell College in 1943. In the 1950s he joined the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen in Concord. He swept the floor while he learned pottery, and eventually set up his own studio in Concord. In 1972 that studio burned down, and he and his wife, Julie, co-founded Studio Potter, which eventually became one of the most influential art periodicals in the United States. He and his wife also started giving workshops at their home that attracted students from around the world.

He was the subject of the documentary “An American Potter” in 1976, and he lectured, researched, taught, and exhibited his work throughout the United States and in Australia, China, Japan, India, and elsewhere. Williams was widely recognized for both his technical ability and his willingness to share his knowledge with others.

In 1998 he was given an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts by Cornell College in recognition of his many accomplishments and enormous influence on the world of pottery, as well as his master craftsmanship and innovative techniques.

He is survived by two daughters and eight grandchildren.