January Issue 2002
M. Mellanay Delhom and Her Collection at the Mint Museum
by Gerry Schmitt
For
readers not familiar with the name M. Mellanay Delhom, this is
the woman who brought her priceless 2,000 piece collection of
pottery and porcelain to the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte,
NC, in 1967. Miss Delhom is 93 years old this year and still going
strong. She has a keen mind. I remember last year meeting her
in the hallway of the Mint and saying: "good morning Miss
Delhom," she pointed to her watch and replied: "it's
afternoon dear... two minutes after 12:00." She is a woman
that pays attention to details, necessary for her research.
M. Mellanay Delhom was born in Ft. Worth, TX, and some of her
friends call her "The Yellow Rose of Texas." She moved
to Chicago in her twenties to study at the Art Institute and DePauw
University. It was at that time she began building a ceramics
collection that, by the mid-1960's, was courted by art museums
worldwide. Through the efforts of Daisy Wade Bridges of Charlotte,
a renowned collector, we can be grateful that Miss Delhom chose
the Mint Museum for her world class ceramics and not one of the
many other museums hoping to acquire this collection.
The Delhom Gallery is on the top floor of the Randolph Road Mint.
The gallery offers a ceramics collection spanning two millennia
and nine cultures.
In 1968, the Delhom Gallery and the Center
for Ceramic Study opened at the Mint, and today offers excellent
resources for research. Miss Delhom's own reference books are
the foundation for the Delhom-Gambrell Reference Library. She
is interested in NC pottery and is a strong supporter of contemporary
artists. In 1971, Miss Delhom founded the NC Historical Pottery
Exploration, responsible for finding the earliest known pottery
in NC and establishing a link between "Tarheel" and
18th century Staffordshire potters.
Distinguishing herself as a collector of international renown
would be enough for one person's lifetime, but Miss Delhom wore
many hats. She CO-founded the famous Shangri-La Restaurant in
Chicago, working there for 20 years. She took trips through the
silk trade routes of the Middle East, climbed Pike's Peak, bought
an old mansion in Chicago and turned it into condominiums in the
early '50s, wrote an article for Time Magazine, and because
of her expertise in Oriental ceramics, was the invited guest of
Mao Tse Tung. She has studied Eastern religions and how artists
used colors, shapes, and designs to express belief.
I first came in contact with Miss Delhom and her ceramics collection
five years ago when I moved to Charlotte. I am the mother of six
children and fed my family of eight three times a day on what
I thought were just "dishes." What an understatement!
As a member of the Mint Museum and the Delhom Service League,
I was eligible to take the informal Orientation Classes, with
lecturer Margaret Zimmermann, offered by the Delhom Service League
from Oct. to Apr. For me, these classes have been a rare learning
experience, not just about clay and ceramics of the world, but
about the history surrounding the pieces. As a novice where ceramics
are concerned, I found these classes not only informative, but
fun. To show the variety of subjects covered, here is the schedule.
We welcome new members.
Covered in 2001
Oct. 8 - What Are Ceramics? I
Oct. 22 - What are Ceramics? II
Nov. 5 - Oriental I
Nov. 12 - Oriental II
Scheduled for 2002
Jan. 7 - Tin Glaze I
Jan. 28 - Tin Glaze II
Feb. 4 - European Porcelain I
Feb. 11 - European Porcelain II
Feb. 25 - European Porcelain III
Mar. ll - English Pottery I
Mar. 25 - English Pottery II
Apr. 8 - The Legacy of Wedgwood
Apr. 22 - Moving into the 19th Century
Where else can you learn about ceramics having
the classes surrounded by this unique collection? For example:
pieces of Chinese ceramics from the T'ang Dynasty introduced 138
BC; Ming Dynasty in the 10th century; Wedgwood; Meissen; Staffordshire;
Limoges, to name a few of the nine cultures represented.
Dr. Samuel Grober, from the Chicago area, was guest speaker at
the Nov. 16, 2001 monthly meeting of the Delhom Service League.
Dr. Grober is a luminary in the field of ceramics, as both collector
and scholar. He said to the audience: "we had hoped Miss
Delhom would choose Chicago for her collection, but she chose
the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte. I hope you all know that
M. Mellanay Delhom put Charlotte on the cultural map with her
collection."
Stop in and see the Mint's Delhom Gallery. Be sure to pick up a Gallery Guide giving the history on each piece, written by Dr. Barbara Perry, Curator of Decorative Arts at the Mint.
For more info call the Mint at 704/337-2000.
Mailing Address: Carolina Arts, P.O. Drawer
427, Bonneau, SC 29431
Telephone, Answering Machine and FAX: 843/825-3408
E-Mail: carolinart@aol.com
Subscriptions are available for $18 a year.
Carolina Arts
is published monthly by Shoestring
Publishing Company, a subsidiary of PSMG, Inc.
Copyright© 2002 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston
Arts from July 1987 - Dec. 1994 and South Carolina Arts
from Jan. 1995 - Dec. 1996. It also publishes Carolina Arts
Online, Copyright© 2002 by PSMG, Inc. All rights reserved
by PSMG, Inc. or by the authors of articles. Reproduction or use
without written permission is strictly prohibited. Carolina
Arts is available throughout North & South Carolina.