Robert Eckels

Bob was born in chicago Ill.  He worked on the family farm during the summer,and helped his dad with his milk delivery business.During World War II He was drafted into the Air force and flew in a rescue plane in the south pacific. 

After his service, Bob went to college on the GI Bill  at University of Illinois, Champlain, and earned a Bachelor's degree in Fine Art. He studied painting and sculpture. Here he met  his wife, Lucille Ginsburg  They went to study in London, Lu on a fullbrite scholarship at the London School of economics, , and Bob at London School of Art where he studied painting and sculpture to earn his Masters Degree.  They bicyled through Europe where Bob met Barnard Leach at his  St. Ives pottery and fell in love with the more contemporary art pottery of the 50's.

When they returned to the US, Bob became an  Professor in Fine

Art, University of Las Vagas, NM. He moved to Ashland Wisconsin  where he to start an Art department  for Northland College and wrote curriculum for pottery, print making, painting and sculpture. He  started  a  Student Industries program-so the students could sell their art and contribute to their tuition . Bob contributed largely to the Mid-century movement of Arts. His  pottery moved  away from utilitarian function to  more artistic expressive forms. He established the Eckels Pottery studio in Ashland, Wisconsin,with Glen Nelson,author of one of the first ceramic books "Ceramics",He picked up the building and  moved it north to Bayfield in 1960. His philosophy at the "Pot Shop", was modeled after the tradition of the Arts & Crafts movement and the  Master and Apprentice programs he saw in Europe the quality of traditional craftsmanship, honest Construction, and theunity of art with craft..  for decades bob nurtured many apprentices at his shop  to  further  their careers as potters and ceramicists. He raised 3 children. His daughter Deanna-Dede.began her career in Ceramics along side her dad and continues Eckels Pottery today.