Raul Coronel

Besides being a potter and ceramic artist, Raul also did textile designs and painted. Here is a photo of one of his more recent paintings:
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I had mentioned earlier in this post that Raul had consented to do a throwing demonstration at my pottery class at the Creative Arts Center in Burbank, California. It was the first time he had thrown pottery in about 20 years. We shot a bit of film of his demo, but I did manage to get a couple of still shots as he was practicing for his "performance". Here he is centering a chunk of clay (I have never seen someone center so easily).

I have a Raul Coronel piece date '63. It is partridges in a pear tree mounted on a cloth covered backboard, approx. 30" x 48". All the tile is is good condition, but the material is very water damaged and stained. Does anyone have any suggestions for remounting this piece without diminishing its value?

Thank you,

would you post some pics so we can see the damage please?

Raul's studio produced several designs for these wall pieces. Yours seems quite large among them. First, does it retain the signature plaque? If it says "raul" it is by Raul himself; if it is marked "coronel" it usually (but not always) denotes that it was made by an assistant. Because of the large size, and the fact that design does not appear in the catalog, I suspect it was made by Raul personally and it may be a one-of-a-kind piece. Most of the pieces I have seen have suffered deterioration to the backing fabric--some minor, some extreme.

About the damage; first does it have any silkscreen printed design elements on the backing fabric? If not I would suggest remounting it. This can be accomplished by carefully removing the pieces from the fabric and soaking them to dissolve the glue (you can use a cellulose sponge to gently scrub away the residue--this will not damage the pieces as they are stoneware). Next cut a piece of similar material as a backing board to the same outer dimensions as your piece (usually a pressed board of some sort). Buy a piece of burlap of similar color and weave. Carefully stretch and glue the burlap to the backing board and weight the surface to keep the material flat while the glue dries (Raul generally used common white glue--apply it in a smooth thin coat with a short napped paint roller). Then carefully glue the ceramic pieces into their original positions (I would suggest taking a photograph and measurements as a guide before beginning this process). Also weight the pieces until the glue is dried. Reframe the piece using the original framing materials if possible.

If the item has silkscreen printed sections of the design, that sets up additional problems, and if I were undertaking this task, I would locate a small private silkscreen operation (like the kind that prints small runs of custom printed t-shirts) and see if they might be able to duplicate the printing on the burlap.

If this is all a bit much for you, you might consider professional assistance.

I have a wall piece that Raul himself remounted in the manner described and I don't think this process would adversely affect the value considering the option of having a shabby looking backing (We call that "restoration"). These items tend to be fairly valuable in the secondary market (I have seen a range of a minimum of $500 up to several thousands USD).

I hope this helps, and please post a picture of the piece as it is now (and perhaps again if you restore it).

Thanks so much for the reply. My camera just stopped working yesterday, but I will post a pic asap. The piece is signed "raul 63" and the ceramic portion only measures 23" wide by 40" tall. There are three birds and the tree is in the pot as I've seen a few other pieces. There is no silkscreening, and, interestingly, the thin wood frame is wrapped in the same material as the backing material, but as a separate piece. Will post a pic once i borrow a camera or get mine fixed.

ok, the one i have is similar to this one at link below:

Raul Coronel, Four Nesting Birds, circa 1965, 28 x 21.75 in., LA Modern (sold for $1,100 in 2007)

http://www.midcenturia.com/2010/11/raul-coronel-master-mid-century_16.html

i just noticed that this link may be prohibited by the site. not sure if it meets the criteria to be allowed, so, if not, i apologize and figure it will be removed! oops.

Hi rhamil (and thanks skay for the nice remark and the happy face kiss). Funny, Kevin from mid-centuria lifted his info on Raul directly from my entry at Askart.com. Not to be selfish though, my intent is to get the information out there and let the world know about Raul and what a force he has been in mid century design. He has been sadly overlooked in the history books, primarily, I think because he was never became a pottery teacher (you know what they say: "Those who can, do; those who can't, teach"). I am attaching a copy of a page from Raul's catalog from the 1960's and as you can see, your piece is indeed there (with an original price of $185). It appears to be one of the more elaborate designs that were produced. BTW, I recently saw "The Flute Player" on ebay, and even though the backing fabric was trashed, the seller was asking $2400 (didn't sell though--some people just don't have a clue). Cheers and Good luck with the restoration.

Oh, and just one more comment; I was looking through a book about Marguerite Wildenhain today (for those of you who may not know, a very well known German woman with a Bauhaus background who relocated to Northern California and established an art center known as Pond Farm from the 1950's-80's, where many leading US potters (including Raul) trained--she also knew Leach and Hamada and was known to have publicly taken issue with Leach's comment that US potters did not possess a "cultural taproot" of ceramic tradition). Anyway, I digress, and what I started to say is that in this book is picture of a tile made by Wildenhain that has a motif of birds roosting in a tree. As Raul's pieces were fresh in mind, I realized that Wildenhain's tile may have been the original inspiration for several of his designs using this motif.

Here is another large lamp base from Raul's studio (#LB 103 in his catalog). It is 19 inches tall and 13 inches wide. I bought this from a seller on ebay. It appeared unmarked, but a closer examination revealed that it is signed very faintly "coronel '68". Raul re-signed it for me last year. This form was regularly produced for the studio by one of Raul's co-workers, Bob Kinzie. Kinzie established "Affiliated Craftsmen, California" in the 1960's and produced this form through the late 1970's. This form has often been incorrectly attributed to David Cressey. Cressey was a friend and contemporary of Coronel's and both men produced designs for "Architectural Pottery Company" which was a major force in American modernist ceramic design from the 1950's through the 1980's. Many of AP's designs, including Raul's classic "Perforated Lantern" are currently being reproduced by "Vessel, Inc.". A few years ago, Raul was presented a design award by the "Museum of California Design" (MOCAD) for the perforated lantern.
Bob Kinzie exhibited in the Syracuse Nationals in 1960. He and his wife Sandy are currently producing ceramic art in Aptos, California; their website is kinziestoneware.com. Some interesting stuff there. Kinzie is a remarkable potter

I just happened upon this forum today as I was doing some research on Mr. Coronel. My now deceased parents were collectors of his work and I've now inherited their pieces and have restored one large mural that my parents called "The Village". I am attaching a picture and would love to know any history of it if Mr. Coronel remembers it. It measures 52" X 26". I believe the item was purchased at his studio in 1971 or 72. And if memory serves me, it was purchased in pieces and my father mounted and framed it. I have since restored it as the original canvas backing had deteriorated. Here is a picture of it:



I also have this fantastic pierced vase that was made into a lamp:



Thank you in advance for any information you might have on these pieces.

Cheers, Eric

Hi Eric, Sorry for the delay in responding but I have been quite busy and haven't checked the forum recently. You have a couple of fantastic pieces! Thanks for sharing them to this post. I will email Raul and ask him to look at the pieces and see if he has any comments. I can tell you a little about them; the wall piece is shown in his catalog from the 1960's. It is listed as "Single or Double Jeweled Village", "available in warm or cool colors with glass". The available sizes listed were 36 x 36" ($260), and 36 x 61" ($410). So it appears you have an unlisted size (perhaps a custom order?). The lamp is a wonderful example of his design work involving incising and carving. You might notice there is a similarly decorated cylinder in the second photo I posted (on page 1). I will get back to this when I have heard back from Raul.

Hi Calusa--thank you so much for the information! That's interesting that the piece village piece seems to be a different size than the catalog listings.

Last week I was very lucky to score a charger plate that you had mentioned he had done in his Venice studio--here's a picture of it. It was done by him in 1978--it's 18 1/2" wide here's a picture of it:



Thank you again for taking the time to to reply and please thank Raul in advance as well. I am so anxious to see the Pomona exhibit this fall. Cheers, Eric

Glad to be of help. That's a great plate you picked up. It was actually done while he was still on Melrose Ave. in Hollywood before he reorganized and moved to the Venice studio. I spoke to him today, he was having some trouble logging onto the forum so he hasn't had a chance to see the pics you posted. He told me that the "village" piece was likely one of a kind which accounts for the odd size. He says the lamp is likely one of about 2 or 3 that were made. He did not make many of those because he says they were quite fragile because of the piercing. I am also looking forward to the Pomona show; there will be a concurrent show at the Museum of Arts & Crafts on Wilshire that will feature the huge yellow covered pot pictured in this post (he calls it "The Banana")

Here are a couple of recent scores; the first is a female bust that is a portrait of Raul's late wife (a sentimental favorite of his). An incredible find at a local estate sale last month. It has only a partial paper label so it went unrecognized, but I was familiar with it from seeing it in his photo archives. Interesting thing about this is it is made from wheel thrown pieces with the features pushed out from the inside and refined on the outer surface. the hair is another wheel thrown pot, altered and placed upside down on the head (pretty amazing accomplishment!).
The second piece is a tall cylinder vase that has been flattened into an oval shape (made in 1964). I got this from the same dealer that I bought the round brown pot from. I traded 2 pieces by Doyle Lane for it.

Here is a photo of Raul's showroom in the 1960's; in the lower left corner you can see the bust of his wife on a shelf next to the very same floor lamp I posted pictures of earlier in this section.

I just noticed there is also an example of the "Jeweled Village" (double), similar to the one posted by ericpalmsprings on the facing wall.

This is one of the most spectacular of Raul's pots I have ever seen (which I am now the proud owner of ). It is Enormous! 14 1/2" high and 19" handle to handle. I bought it off ebay today--it was listed by the same local estate sale company I bought the female bust from, so I was able to drive over and pick it up (avoiding the $71 shipping fee). It is a later piece made in 1986. This is one of Raul's original photos of it.

Hi Calusa, thanks for all the information and nice pictures. After reading all your posts about Raul Coronel, I also was watching this piece on eBay, I'm glad you won it, congratulations!!

Thanks for your thoughts Ferrao; I'm very pleased to have won that auction. Normally, you have to put a stick of dynamite in my pocket to blow that much money out of my wallet, but it was actually well worth the cost for such a great piece. I'm also very pleased at the response this post has received. People from all over the world have referred to it for information. Raul is quite happy that previously unknown material regarding his work and career is now available and getting some degree of the recognition it deserves.

Due in part to the response to this post, as well as the concurrent Getty Foundation funded PST (Pacific Standard Time) exhibitions at several California Museums and educational institutions taking place later this year through 2012, I have been discussing with several people the possibility of mounting a solo retrospective exhibit of Raul's work in 2012. The show would feature ceramic works, paintings by Raul, and textiles if any can be located. Although at this point several venues are being considered, I have decided at this time to put the word out to collectors and dealers in the Southern California area to solicit pieces of work by Raul that they might own and be willing to make available for loan to such an exhibit. The items need not (but may) be offered for sale. Our hope is to generate a catalog to accompany the show. The benefits of loaning items would be increased status of the works and the collectors which would likely elevate the value of the pieces, as well as the civic pride involved in making the work available to the viewing public. Please feel free to contact me through this forum by Personal Message (PM), for my direct contact information.
I would like to thank Forum Member ericpalmsprings for generously offering to loan several pieces from his collection as well as those owned by members of his family.

Additionally, I would like to thank all those who have commented and/or contributed photos to this post; and encourage others to do the same.

Here is a photo of one of Raul's wall pieces. It belongs to a friend of mine. It is a tongue in cheek take on Adam & Eve. The dealer who had it thought perhaps the wry looking "Adam" was based on Raul's face--I can kinda see the resemblance. Interesting about this item is it was not featured in his catalog and was made as a one-of-a-kind piece. He remembers making it and selling it to a woman from Colorado--he described her as having "very large breasts" (which probably accounts for his being able to remember her all this time later). He was curious about how the piece made it's way from Colorado to San Diego, California, which is where it was when I acquired it for my friend Tim. Curiously he signed it "coronel" rather than "raul". (The curved edges are lens distortion from the camera).

So it has occurred to me that I have included very little in the way of background history to this post, so here are some highlights: Raul Angulo Coronel was born in February 1926 in Mexicali, Mexico. He immigrated to the US when he was 14 and became a naturalized US Citizen when he joined the US Marine Corps in 1944 and served during WWII. At the end of the war he was sent to Japan where he witnessed first hand the horrific aftermath of the US atomic bomb attack. After the war he attended the University of California at Berkely, then he did research in art at the University of Hawaii (and for a while became a bartender at the original Trader Vic's). He met and married his wife, Leanore in Hawaii, then returned to California where he attended the College of Arts & Crafts in Oakland, then Los Angeles State College (where he studied under Bernard Kester, and achieved a B.A. in Art). in 1956-57 he attended the University of Southern California and did graduate studies with F. Carlton Ball and Susan Peterson.
In 1958 he established Stoneware Designs, Inc. in Los Angeles which was in business until 1969. In the 1970's he was a freelance designer and worked with several major ceramic production companies. In 1980, he reorganized the company as Raul Coronel, Inc. in Venice California. The latest date I have seen on a piece from the latter operation is 1986. After that, he essentially retired from ceramic production (Though one of the partners, Brent Bennett, continues to produce some of Raul's designs through his own company BJB Architectural Stoneware). At this point I will not go into the many awards, exhibitions, major commissions and collections that have included Raul's work.
So, there you have it; a brief synopsis of the career of Raul Coronel, who IMHO is one of the greatest American Modernist Ceramic Masters.

I was extremely lucky to happen upon this piece at a yard sale. What was appalling was that the woman was somewhat aware of its history and yet she had it marked for a paltry sum. Her story was that her mother had it made by special order in the late seventies. I was wondering if anyone here on the forum recognizes the design and could tell me whether her information is accurate or if it is a standard design from a catalog. It bears the signature 'raul' and is dated '77 so at least that much of her information is true. Any info is greatly appreciated. I'm just dying to know.

Very nice pot suvonoge, excellent form and design; and what can I say; appalling to some is great fortune to others. Some people are just not aware of the genre or the intrinsic value of certain items to those who appreciate them. And really, outside this forum, information on Raul is not readily available so it is not surprising the woman you got this from was not fully aware of its importance.
I can tell you this piece is definitely not represented in the catalog, so it seems clear this is a one-off studio piece. Congratulations on your score . I will ask Raul to check it out and see if he recalls any specifics. I'm sure he will be interested to know it turned up in Florida (via California (???)). Thanks for posting the pics!