Majlis Grotell

Place: Helsinki

Born: 1899

Death: 1973

Biography:

Maija Grotell was an influential Finnish-American ceramic artist and educator. She is often described as the 'Mother of American Ceramics.' Grotell was born in Helsinki, Finland in 1899. She studied at the University of Art and Design Helsinki and later at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm. In 1927, Grotell moved to the United States and began teaching at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1939. Grotell was a pioneer in the use of ceramics in industrial design and is best known for her work in the field of studio pottery. She developed a unique style of ceramic art that combined elements of Scandinavian design with American modernism. Grotell's work was exhibited widely and she received numerous awards and honors during her lifetime. She died in 1973.