A pioneer in the techniques of glazes for modern studio pottery and a long-time art teacher, Edwin Scheier, working with his wife, Mary Goldsmith Scheier, was known for utilitarian pots highlighted by skillfully applied glazes. With him creating and applying the glazes to forms made by Mary, the couple worked side by side most of their married life. Many of their thrown pots had themes of birth and rebirth in humans and animals. In addition to pottery, they made small sculptures from local clay, and some of these pieces resembled Sung Dynasty-era pottery.

Edwin Scheier was born in New York City in the Bronx to an American mother and Jewish German father. The father died when Edwin was very young, whic...