Cinerary Urn
Artist
William Morris
(American, b. 1957)
CultureAmerican
Date2002
MediumBlown glass with horse hair
Dimensions9 × 9 × 8 3/8 in. (22.9 × 22.9 × 21.3 cm)
Base: 3 3/4 in. (9.5 cm)
Overall, Rim: 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm)
Base: 3 3/4 in. (9.5 cm)
Overall, Rim: 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm)
SignedIn script on base: "William Morris 2002"
Credit LineGift of the artist
Object number2002.20
Not on view
Label TextWilliam Morris
American (b. 1957)
Cinerary Urn, 2002
Blown glass with horse hair
Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA
Gift of the artist
2002.20
Mystery is the hidden companion of joy and
of loss, both of which are deeply felt but not always understood…. Our creativity and intuition access endless magic. If we draw
upon them during the mourning process, many of our learned notions about death-taught to
us so that we might be spared pain and discomfort-dissolve, bringing us to a place
of liquid contemplation.
~William Morris, 2002
Cinerary urns are vessels intended to house the cremated remains of the dead. The ancient Romans were the first to fashion them from glass. William Morris created his first Cinerary Urn after the death of his mother in 2001. The vessels became a series following the deaths of other close friends and mentors, as well as the lives lost in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Morris drew inspiration for the urns from a multitude of cultural sources, searching for a common, human need to deal with the awe and mystery of death.
ProvenanceThe artist, 2002; Gift of the artist to Chrysler Museum of Art, 2002.
Exhibition History"William Morris: Elegy," The Museum of Arts and Design, New York, Ny., Jan. 17 - Apr. 22, 2003.
Published ReferencesWilliam Morris, _William Morris: Cinerary Urn Installation_, exh. cat., Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Va., and The Museum of Arts and Design, New York, Ny., 2002-2003, 24-25.
