I was lucky to come across this Fred Johnson designed Bauer rose bowl the other day at the thrift. I had seen the particular glaze before, and the shape seemed familiar, so even though there was no markings on the bottom I was at least 70% sure it was a Bauer item. Likely, the lack of markings was the reason it was still sitting there at the store - for a dollar!

Fred Johnson came to L.A. from Arkansas, where he was a big factor in the success of some of Niloak Pottery’s items. His uncle, Matt Carlton, was at Bauer at the time and was probably instrumental in helping to bring him over. According to Chipman’s Bauer book, Johnson-designed Bauer pieces can sometimes be distinguished from Carlton’s by their “indentation” of the bases and the fact that the bottoms are often glazed.