Miscellaneous Poole Pottery Gallery
Chinese Blue
Chinese Blue vase, shape no. 969 (12cm tall)
The Chinese Blue reactive glaze was developed by John Adams in the 1920's. Some of these pots were originally sold with ebonized wooden stands carved in the Chinese manner.
Plane Ware
Poole Pottery Plane Ware bowl, colour combination 9, shape no. 762P (15cm diameter) Mid 1930's Pottery with wings (or lugs)
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Picotee click on a pot to enlarge
Poole Pottery Picotee vase and tableware Left, soup bowl with metamorphic lid/saucer shape number 110, 8cm (3") tall, colour combination 21, bowl in white earthenware, lid red earthenware; right, vase shape number 402, 12cm (4 1/2") tall, colour combination 9, white earthenware; and lidded pot and integral saucer, shape number 640, 9cm (3 1/2") tall, colour combination 40, stoneware.
Picotee spray-glazed pottery was launched in 1932. The range was initially conceived by John Adams and then developed by Leslie Elsden who was head of the spraying shop where the coloured bands were applied using the "Aerograph". This was a period of great transition for Poole Pottery and these pots encapsulate that. The factory was shifting its focus towards the production of tableware and the picotee likewise was adapted to both decorative and functional use. There was also experimentation and change in the Poole pottery body, and the pots pictured above again demonstrate this, being made from both red and white earthenware and stoneware.
This flexibility in material may have been quite contagious, as there appears a similar flexibility in the function of the pots themselves, with lids becoming saucers and saucers fusing with bowls - the mind boggles.
The Picotee look was recreated in the late 1970's, again by Leslie Elsden, as the Calypso range, but for me Calypso lacks the subtle velvety qualities of Picotee.
Aegean click on a pot to enlarge
Aegean pots decorated using the sgraffito technique From left to right: Shape no. 83 vase (6" tall), unsigned; shape no. 361 tray, unsigned; shape no. 81 trapezoid shaped sweet dish, Carole Holden 1970-74; shape no. 42 heptagonal dish, Jane Brewer 1972-75; and shape no. 361 tray, Carolyn Wills 1972-79.
In his long career Leslie Elsden also found time to develop the Aegean range. Introduced in 1970, Aegean utilizes spray-on glazes in a wide range of techniques (sgraffito, silhouette, mosaic, flow line and carved clay) and patterns (from pure 1970's abstraction to more figurative images of fish, leaves, boats and pastoral scenes).
Initially thought of as a replacement for Delphis, it was never as successful, although it really does have the fantastic look of the 1970's. These days Aegean still isn't as collectable as Delphis and suffers a bit from its swirly brown stereotype, but Aegean pots can be surprisingly colourful and graphic in their decoration.
Atlantis Roll over mouse to change view
More metamorphosis, pin dish-come-candleholder Atlantis pot thrown and carved by Catherine Connett sometime between 1973 and 1976, stamped with her 2 interlocking back-to-back Cs (like the Channel logo).
Atlantis dates from about 1969 and came from the Poole Craft Section headed up, at that time, by Guy Sydenham. The range has a similar look to Guy's solo work. The bowl/candle holder pictured is made from high fired red earthenware, but other Atlantis pieces have a grey stoneware body.
The Atlantis throwers were encouraged by Guy Sydenham to mark their work for the first time at Poole, in recognition of their individual artistic contribution. It often strikes me that in any collection of Poole Pottery, Traditional, Freeform, Studio, or Delphis, there must be big percentage of pots that were thrown by Guy Sydenham, but without any individual recognition.
Atlantis ware isn't all that common: I think when it was made it was quite expensive and production relatively time consuming and small scale, and prices today reflect this.
Olympus
Poole Pottery Olympus Range: Small vase in Black Panther glaze shape no. 60A, and bud vase in Dusk glaze, shape no. 33 (14.5 cm tall)
The Olympus range of vases, dishes and lidded pots were designed by Ros Sommerfelt in 1977. Hand thrown in stoneware (just like the some of the earliest pottery made at Poole) and hand painted with abstract shell and plant forms. It must have been really quite labour-intensive to make pots that in the end don't look very hand-made.
Lamps
Helios table lamp (Magnolia colour, 12.5cm tall) Designed by Robert Jefferson in 1964 Aren't lamps brilliant. Just when you think there's no room for any more Poole Pottery, along come lamps. You can always find room for another one, and sometimes your partner doesn't even notice! |
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Living Glaze
This huge (32cm diameter) Poole bowl came in an equally giant box. But still, someone managed to climb down our chimney with it for Christmas 2009. It's hand thrown and caved, very tactile, and from the Furnace range, designed by Alan White in 2002
Commemoratives and Souvenirs
These mementos came in all shapes and sizes. For most people perhaps, the fact that their keepsake was made by Poole would have been quite incidental and I guess they were never intended to be collected together like this. I didn't plan on collecting them either, but once you have one, its a shame not to collect the rest. Most of these plates are screen-printed and hand coloured. |
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Shape no. 364 Guildford Cathedral (1959-67) |
Shape no. 364 Coventry Cathedral (1959-67) |
Shape no. 364 The Custom House Poole (1959-67) |
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The sweet trays above are shape no. 361. In no particular order, Thomas Becket was produced in 1970 to mark the 800th anniversary of his death; Salisbury Cathedral, like it says dates from 1963 and the image was taken from a drawing by Tony Morris. The sweet tray was also produced minus the top inscription; Lincoln Cathedral produced some time after 1970, I have a Canterbury Cathedral dish that looks identical but with different wording and there may well be others; Hardy's Cottage with inscription on reverse "Thomas Hardy, born 1840 at Higher Bockhampton, Produced by Poole Pottery for the Hardy Festival 1968"; Haven House Inn, Muleford Quay; The Peacock tray has the 1959-67 stamp with Brownsea Castle marked also. I went to Brownsea Island by ferry from Poole harbour a couple of years ago to see red squirrels. Saw one squirrel and lots of wading birds, but don't remember seeing peacocks, but they must have been there in the 60's at least; Matapan motor launch which began sailing from Poole to Swanage and the Isle of Wight in 1948, it was renamed Poole Bellle (2) in 1968, stamped on reverse "Spring Promotion May 1968". And if your interested you can read more about the Dorset Belles at www.simplonpc.co.uk; and finally a more Jolly, but less sea worthy vessel - Round Table Conference Bournmouth 1966
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Shape no. 365 Brownsea Castle - on Brownsea Island as viewed from Poole Harbor (1959-67) |
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The back of this plate reads "Replica of the Commemorative Plaque presented to Her Majesty The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh by Dorset Police on 23rd March, 1979" The original was hand painted by Pat Summers, the one above is transfer printed and was made in limited numbers to be shared amongst Dorset's Finest. |
European Architectural Heritage plate 1975, Designed by Graham Smith of Poole Museum services and produced in a limited edition of 1000.
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The Leyland and Birmingham Rubber Company Ltd. 125 year anniversary plate. Transfer printed and marked on back "Made by Poole Pottery in a special limited Edition 1987". Given to employees of the company in July of the same year.