As Valentine’s Day approaches—a time to celebrate love, care, and human connection—we are pleased to feature a recent acquisition to the Pasadena Museum of History’s collections: a ceramic nativity by Joy Thompson, a gifted ceramic artist who worked with the renowned tilemaker Ernest A. Batchelder at Pasadena Pottery. Fittingly, Thompson’s birthday falls on February 13, on the eve of Valentine’s Day. The ceramic nativity features delicately glazed figurines, each between 4 and 9 inches tall.

The Joy Mattie Thompson Collection came to PMH through Jack Moore, a Pasadena Arts and Crafts collector and specialist who had previously loaned materials for the Museum’s 2016 exhibition, Batchelder: Tilemaker. Moore had done business with Joy Thompson. The figurines were donated by Joy Thompson’s nephew, Robert Alworth. Susan Beeler Anderson, our wonderful volunteer, who processed this collection, is also a genealogist and worked her magic to connect with Robert, who generously donated these figurines to the Museum.  This blog is a condensed version of the biography Susan wrote in the collection’s finding guide.

Joy Mattie Thompson was born in Oklahoma on February 13, 1912, to Thomas Jefferson Thompson and Lulu V. Cogburn.  She was the sixth child in a family of nine children- seven brothers and two sisters. The family lived in Madge, Harmon County, Oklahoma, in 1920 before moving to Pasadena, California, before 1929. Her father served as a minister at a local church and worked for the city Parks Department. In 1930, Joy and her sister Mary worked as stenographers while living with their parents at 3142 N. Fair Oaks. By 1936, Joy had shifted her career focus to art, listed as an artist in the Pasadena City Directory while residing with her parents at 631 Crosby. She furthered her education at the California Graduate School of Design, receiving a certificate of attendance at its first commencement in 1939. Notable ceramicist Ernest W. Batchelder, owner of Pasadena Pottery, delivered the commencement address. Newspaper accounts indicate that Joy was a student of the Viennese sculptress Susie Singer, a Pasadena resident, and noted figure sculptor Clarence Shaler.  Batchelder recognized Joy as an artist who “combines the sensitive feeling for form of the sculptor with the subtle color sense of the painter in the expression of a personality gifted with a rare imagination.”  Joy established her ceramic business in 1942, operating under the professional name “Joy Thompson”.  Her choice to maintain her professional identity as “Joy Thompson” even after marriage can be considered progressive for the time.

Her artwork was popular with decorators and was sold at gift shops. She gained recognition through various exhibitions and demonstrations in Pasadena, Los Angeles, and Palm Springs.  Her work was shown at the National Housing Exposition at the Pan-Pacific Auditorium (1945), the Music-Arts Club of Pasadena (1945), the Los Feliz Woman’s Club (1948), and the Shakespeare Club of Pasadena (1958).  Joy married a widower, William (Bill) Edward Alworth, on December 18, 1944, at St. Mary’s Church in Oakland, California.  The wedding announcement described her as a ceramic sculptress.  In 1924, he joined the City of Pasadena engineering staff, and in 1928, he served as a Pasadena city planning engineer.  He “had a part in planning the $6,000,000 Arroyo Park Way.”  Joy accompanied William in Palm Springs and contributed as a board member of the Allied Art Association.  After four years in Palm Springs, William resigned to become a co-partner in Joy’s ceramic business.  Joy’s studio was located in the “bridge to nowhere”- an expression used to describe the part of the bridge that remained after the demolition of the bridge between Hotel Green and the annex now called Castle Green. In addition to selling her artwork, she sold Batchelder’s ceramic pieces.  In 1963, Joy expanded her professional activities to include work as an associate at the property management firm Parker, Towle, and Thompson.  William passed away on January 6, 1972. In her later years, Joy lived at Park Marino in Pasadena.  Her other interests included jewelry making and yoga.  She lived a long and productive life, passing away on January 11, 2014, at the age of 101.