What is ‘Art Pottery’?

Ceramics on offer at auction can sometimes be listed as ‘Studio Pottery’ or ‘Art Pottery’. Here we find out a little more about ‘Art Pottery’ – the definition of the term and what kinds of objects might be included in this genre.

What era was Art Pottery made?

During the second half of the 19^th Century there was a conflict between the implementation of mass-production and the desire for individually crafted items. A taste developed for decorative wares that appeared handmade and stylishly designed with on-trend motifs. This shift in demand started around the period 1850-1860, and coincided with the World Art Fairs taking place during this time.

So does Art Pottery mean it is made by hand?

No. There were some well-established, large firms, such as Royal Worcester and Mintons who were already successfully producing vast numbers of ceramic goods but wanted to take advantage of the demand for unique-looking wares. Therefore they began to hire individual artists to design pieces that would move away from their standard ranges. Some artists worked for more than one company – the most famous and prolific is Dr Christopher Dresser – and this is when we really see the emergence of ‘the Designer’ in the sense we would understand it today.

_{Lot 7: Rebecca Coleman for Mintons Art Pottery at Kensington Gore, Charger painted with an Aesthetic Movement female portrait, 1874}

What examples of Art Pottery might we find at Roseberys?

Art Pottery is sold within the Design Since 1860 sales that take place 3 times a year. A good example would be the Aesthetic Movement ceramic charger with a hand-painted female portrait, painted by Rebecca Coleman but sold by Mintons. This was in fact produced at the Minton’s Art Pottery Studio, at Kensington Gore, which was a short-lived enterprise designed to showcase Minton’s ability to lead the way in Design rather than simply following fashion, but sadly it only lasted for four years.

Another item offered at Roseberys is the Royal Worcester Owl ewer which has the basis of the traditional blush ivory ceramics already being produced by Worcester, but the gilded dragon to the handle is a popular motif of the Movement and the beautiful detailing of the owl, place this piece firmly in the field of Art Pottery.

_{Lot 56: Daisy Makeig-Jones for Wedgwood, Large 'Temple on a Rock'/'Dragon King' vase and cover, from the 'Fairyland lustre' series, circa 1920}

_{Offered in the 2022 September Sale}

Worcester also employed artists and one of their most successful designers was Daisy Makeig-Jones who came up with the hugely popular Fairyland Lustre range.

Are there any other big names in the manufacture of Art Pottery?

Another major contributor is William De Morgan. His ceramics are less about the form (of the pots) than the decoration; in fact, in the early days of his company’s output the pots and tiles were brought in from other companies and these ‘blanks’ were subsequently decorated and fired at De Morgan’s pottery. De Morgan himself came up with wonderful fanciful designs which were then often applied by members of staff under his strict supervision.

_{Lot 17: William de Morgan, Six tiles in the 'Mongolian' tile panel design, 1898}

Whereas ‘Studio Pottery’ would usually be produced in very limited quantities or as a one-off, and most of the work done by a single artist/maker, these are ceramics which could be produced in quantities as needed, albeit to a far more limited run than the mass-produced wares.