RubyGayle Jackson

RubyGayle Jackson started china painting in 1925.  She has some interesting stories to tell, so I will just convey a little about her here, in her own words:

Computers are newer to me than china painting. My son decided a couple of years ago that I needed a computer. I wasn't so sure. I have really enjoyed it and like a micro wave-how could I get along without it? But I will confess I am lazy about learning. It is so much easier to call Bob (son) and say "how"? The language often throws me. I found that I often had to learn how to do an operation and then I could read the book and understand! So much for technique.

A little about me. I grew up in a very small town in southwestern Okla. When I was about 8 or 9 I went to Hobart, about 25
miles away, to spend a week with a little girl friend. During my visit we, and her mother, were invited to have lunch with two of her mother's friends. I can still remember that when we walked into the dining room I was spell bound! The table was set with the most beautiful hand painted china I had ever seen. Little pink roses on every thing!! I couldn't wait to get home and heckle my mother until she could find someone to teach me to paint china. That took a bit of doing but a young student in a little college 30 miles from my home agreed to teach an older girl and me.  It was a 30 mile drive on Saturdays over red clay dirt roads.

The college had a kiln. A big old black, kerosene fired thing that took a couple of days to bring to maturity and then as long to cool. It was only fired when it was loaded full, which might be a week or a month. This was about 1925, I was 10 yrs. old. I'm sure the trips stopped when the winter weather made roads impassable. I had done about a half dozen pieces. I
still have two. One included the use of lustre and Roman Gold. I still have many of the first supply of paints in a wooden box and even a pat of Roman Gold that I can't stand to use. The price, still on it, is 45 cents!!! There was no such thing as our wonderful kilns like we have today.

There are many people painting today, I'm sure, who are as old as I (82) but probably few started so long ago and have seen so many changes in China painting materials and techniques, as I have seen.

There was no more china painting until I was married and moved to another small town in northwestern Okla. Our first walk down the main street was past a little gift shop where hand painted china was displayed. "China painting lessons!" We lived there 10 months before my husband was transferred. I think I must have lived at the china shop more than I lived in our apt. that 10 months. This was in 1934 and still the era of the big black kerosene fired kiln. I painted a breakfast set (wild roses, of course), a dozen dessert plates, all different, and several small pieces.  Some of pieces of this set are shown on this page.

Once again the transfers came regularly and in a few years, a family. During the war (WW II) years we lived in Okla. City and I missed a wonderful opportunity to study with some of the very good painters there. It was a time with a young family and all of the demands of the time. Years passed and in 1955 we moved to Ada, a pretty town in south central Okla. I went to work at Sears and retired in 1980.

I had a young friend who knew I had painted and she would often say "you must start painting again". And I always had an excuse. In late 1984 she came by the house one day and said "We are building a new home, I have a new kiln and I won't be using it for at least a year, I want you to use it and paint", and she brought it to me. I had just read in the paper where a
small china painting club here would be having a series of free lessons for anyone interested. I went and I've painted hundreds of pieces since that day. I took a few lessons from a young lady who was a very good artist but so new at china painting I found that I did better on my own with the help of many of todays good books and studies.

My first shock was that there was an 'open' medium. What in the world was that? And what were they talking about 'C strokes'. Strokes? I thought you just painted. And what had happened to those wonderful lavender oil and clove fragrances that were always where china was being painted?? And even though I had played with ceramics in the 50's and had a kiln available it was wonderful to be able to fire as many, as few and as often and when I wanted. I painted day in and day out. No amount of therapy could have done more for my morale. I made the conventions, attended seminars at the WOCP
Museum in Okla. City and joined the china painting club where we often brought in out of town teachers. I took a course in acid etching, raised paste and gold, have worked with enamels, matt, metallics tapestry, and have experimented with any thing I could think of.

I have received some nice awards but have never sold a piece of my work. I felt that the renewed opportunity came to me at such a needed time that I wanted to give back any help and talent I have to teach others.  For some time, my home was open every Friday for anyone who wanted to come and paint. I've really slowed down and haven't painted much the last couple of years. Not lack of interest, just days too short to do all the things I want to do and have the energy for. Adding the computer hasn't helped in conserving time!! I've found that I paint much better when I am painting for a special person or for an special occasion. I have pieces in several foreign countries as well as most of our states and I hope the ones who have them use them. I doubt that there is ever a day that one or more pieces of my china is not being used. I have painted several sets of dinner wear but I don't like to paint the same thing over and over. My favorite set has three small designs on each piece, none alike. Yes, I have favorite pieces and they aren't always ones that others especially like.

If you would like to email RubyGayle to let her know how you like her paintings, her email address is rgjack@chicksaw.com.   You can click on the hyperlink below to send her email now.

Send E-Mail to RubyGayle Jackson

Return to Other China Painters

Here are some of RubyGayle's paintings.

RubyGayle Jackson's Paintings

Return to Other China Painters

Return to Home Page