Studio pottery
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[edit] General Information
Studio pottery is made by artists working alone or in small groups, producing unique items or pottery in small quantities. Much studio pottery is table ware or cook ware but an increasing number of studio potters produce non-functional or sculptural items. Since the 1980s there has been a distinct trend away from functional pottery (e.g. Grayson Perry) and some studio potters now prefer to call themselves ceramic artists, ceramists or simply artists. Studio pottery is represented by potters all over the world but has strong roots in Britain.
Since the second half of, and especially late, 20th century ceramics have become more highly respected in the arts world. While previously there was little international market for ceramics outside of Japan with the onset of potters such as Hans Coper and Lucie Rie ceramics began to grow in stature as being desirable artistic objects valuable in their own right as art and not just as a functional objects. This trend has continued and there are now several large exhibitions worldwide, including Collect and Origin (formery the Chelsea crafts fair) in London, SOFA CHICAGO and SOFA NEW YORK (international exposititons of sculpture objects & functional art) that include ceramics as a major art form. Ceramics indeed are also now sold in their own right at auctions houses such as Bonhams and Sothebys.
[edit] British Studio Pottery
[edit] General Information
A representative body for studio pottery in the UK is the Craft Potters’ Association, which has a members’ showroom in Marshall Street, London W1, and publishes a journal, Ceramic Review.
[edit] Pre 1900
It is generally considered that studio pottery emerged in the late 19th century out of the Arts and Crafts Movement in applied art, which was intended to rediscover high standards of design that its practitioners believed had been eroded by machine production and large-scale manufacture. However, with the notable exceptions of Bernard Palissy (~1510-1590) and William de Morgan (1839-1917), there were few ceramic artists directly associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement. The precursors of studio pottery were the "art potteries" of the period included:
- Martin Brothers of the Martinware Pottery from 1873
- Fishley Pottery from the early 1800s
- William Moorcroft (potter)
- Della Robbia Pottery (1894-1901)
- William and Edward Taylor of the Ruskin Pottery from 1898
- Charles Vyse (1882-1971)
- Salopian Art Pottery
[edit] 1900 - 1990: Birth of contemporary british ceramics
Leading trends in British studio pottery in the 20th century are represented by Bernard Leach, Dora Billington, Lucie Rie and Hans Coper
Originally trained as a fine artist, Bernard Leach (1887-1979) established a style of pottery, the ethical pot, strongly influenced by Chinese, Korean, Japanese and medieval English forms. After briefly experimenting with earthenware, he turned to stoneware fired to high temperatures in large oil- or wood-burning kilns. This style dominated British studio pottery in the mid 20th century. Leach's influence was disseminated by his writings (e.g. A Potter's Book[1]) and the apprentice system he ran at his pottery in St Ives, Cornwall, through which many notable studio potters passed. Leach taught intermittently at Dartington Hall, Devon from the 1930s.
Other ceramic artists exerted an influence through their positions in art schools. Dora Billington (1890-1968) studied at Hanley School of Art, worked in the pottery industry and was latterly head of pottery at the Central School of Arts and Crafts. She worked in media that Leach did not, e.g. tin-glazed earthenware, and influenced potters such as William Newland, Margaret Hine, Nicholas Vergette and Alan Caiger-Smith.
Lucie Rie (1902-1995) came to London in 1938 as a refugee from Austria. She had studied at the Vienna Kunstgewerbeschule and has been regarded as essentially a modernist. Rie experimented and produced new glaze effects. She was a friend of Leach and was greatly impressed by his approach, especially about the "completeness" of a pot.[2] The bowls and bottles which she specialised in are finely potted and sometimes brightly coloured. She taught at Camberwell College of Arts from 1960 until 1972.
Hans Coper (1920-1981), also a refugee, worked with Rie before moving to a studio in Hertfordshire. His work is non-functional, sculptural and unglazed. He was commissioned to produce large ceramic candlesticks for Coventry Cathedral in the early 1960s. He taught at Camberwell College of Arts from 1960 to 1969, where he influenced Ewen Henderson. He taught at the Royal College of Art from 1966 to 1975, where his students included Elizabeth Fritsch, Alison Briton, Jacqui Poncelet, Carol McNicoll, Geoffrey Swindell, Jill Crowley, and Glenys Barton, all of whom produce non-functional work.
[edit] 1990 - Current: Modern british potters
There is some considerable debate about if modern potters are moving the form forward or not. As the 1990's continued two trends have emerged. The first was a trend towards much more minimalistic vessels which while resembling usable bowls and plates are emphatically not for practical use. Some good examples of this type of work can be seen by Edmund De Waal, Rupert Spira and Julian Stair. The other form has trended to produce far more abstract forms from figurines Richard Slee to completely abstract shapes such as those by Gordon Baldwin. Grayson Perry is probably the best known living potter of this form having won the Turner prize.
[edit] Major Studio Pottery Collections
While ceramics can be seen in many galleries throughout the world studio pottery, being a relatively new art form, is only shown in quantity at a few major galleries. All the galleries listed below have major sections devoted to this art form and are well worth a visit to discover more about this exciting and growing art form.
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Birmingham Museum and Arts Gallery
- Sainsbury Center for Visual Arts
- Stoke on Trent Museum
[edit] See also
[edit] Studio Potters
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[edit] References
- ^ Leach, Bernard. A Potter’s Book, Faber and Faber, 1988. ISBN 0-5710-4927-3
- ^ Gowing, Christopher, and Rice, Paul, British Studio Ceramics in the 20th Century, Barrie and Jenkins, 1989, p.113. ISBN 0-7126-2042-7
