Ceramic Review MAY/JUNE 1974
Editors: Eileen Lewenstein Emmanuel Cooper 5 Belsi:ze Lane London NWJ SAD
NUMBER 27
Contents Lucie Rie Tarby Davenport The Oxygen Formula for Glazes :vlichael Gill Potters' Tips Travelling Abroad Maya Potters of Southern Belize Deborah Hughes Hallett John Davies, CPA new member
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Press Moulding Technique Jeannie Lowe The Craftsman in Business Book Reviews Exhibition Reviews Letters Forthcoming Exhibitions Classified Advertisements Cover Lucie Rie- Bowl, oxidised stoneware . Article page 4 .
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Modern Tradition
Tradition can be used to sum up a whole variety of attitudes which range from jazz to royal occasions. To some people tradition is a reassuring confirmation of a glorious past while to others it suggests privilege, and controlled and limited thought. To talk about traditions in studio pottery is to tread on dangerous ground because, with rare (and debatable) exceptions, studio potters did not begin work until the 1920's. For this Bernard Leach can clearly be identified as the Father though the ideas and artistic style he introduced followed a keen interest in Japanese artifacts in the 1870's and 80's which became part of the aesthetic movement and of Art Nouveau. Leach's most revolutionary concept is that the artist can be craftsman and technician who not only conceives his own designs but prepares his own clay, makes his own shapes and fires his own kiln. The idea was classic in its appeal. At first the general public were slow to appreciate his pots though there were plenty of admirers and followers particularly after the publication of A -Potters Book in 1940.
Outside the 'Leach' tradition but affected by it is Lucie Rie who came to this country as a well established potter. At first she made reduced earthenware but contact with Leach set her thinking about stoneware and she eventually started making high fired wares in quantity shortly after the war. With a rare brilliance of personal vision she quickly developed her own style which owes little to that of Leach. Her work is delicate and elegant, with textured surfaces and the colours of oxidised stonewares such as rich yellows, subtle pinks and greens and matt blacks. Emphasis in her work is on the inside as well as the outside shape. Lucie Rie's pots confused the studio pottery public . They had begun to appreciate the rich tenmoku's and subtle celadons with incised or brush decoration, and felt out of place with the poised, cool work of this sophisticated potter . Success, however, was not far away and though the public and potter was polarized toward the Leach or the R ie tradition they saw that both were equally valid. The accolade of the retrospective Arts Council exhibition in 1967 established a rightful place for Lucie Rie among the best creative potters.
Today the situation has broadened. There are many serious and committed ceramic students leaving art schools who have little interest in the craft of pottery but wish . to use the materials to express their ideas . To try to consider their work within any traditions would be unfair and almost impossible. After seeing the work of these students, which makes great demands with regard to content- though such demands are often justified, it is a great joy to turn once again to the work of Lucie Rie and find the peaceful, considered quality which attracts attention and gives an enormous amount in return .
Ceramic Review is pleased to feature an article on Lucie Rie in this issue. Writing about the potter and her work overleaf Tarby Davenport describes her as a very private person and somehow her pots have a very personal message . Welcome Mr Jenkins The election of a new government has brought a new minister with responsibility for the Arts; Mr. Hugh Jenkins has been appointed to the post. So far he has made an excellent start by abolishing the ridiculous museum admission charges. He promises to implement the scheme for payments to authors whose books are borrowed from public lending libraries. With more and more potters committing themselves to print (and practically all books published on ceramics receive a serious review in this magazine) such a project will be welcomed . However as Bill Ismay recently pointed out, it is not the payments that are causing the anguish, it is the method by which they are to be collected. Librarians are already fully worked and if given the task of reporting loans the additional commitments will not be welcome. It is with deep regret that we report the death of Mr C.W. Noake on Tuesday, March 5th Mr Noake is best known to many studio potters through his firm 'Potclays and Sons' and in the latter part of his life he became very involved with the supply and development of suitable clay bodies . His tremendous knowledge was gair>ed from a lifetime's experience in the potteries, first as a student at the North Staffordshire Technical College , followed by an apprenticeship and eventually a works manager . In the early 30's he became interested in the use of fireclays of South Staffordshire as a less costly substitute for Dorset and Devon ball clays. In 1941 he formed Potclays and Sons Ltd . who originally specialized in the application of South Staffordshire fireclays to the pottery industry . Increased Costs From Issue No 28 Ceramic Review will cost 35p. Subscriptions £2.50,overseas £3.00. The editors regret the increase but have kept the extra charges to the minimum . Previous Issues Just in case this is the first issue of Ceramic Rev iew that you have seen, this is what you missed in the back numbers, available at 35p incl. p & p (overseas 42p) from the Editors, 5 Belsize Lane, London NW3 5AD.
No . 19 Ceramics and Education, Part 1. Workshop David Eeles . Victor Margrie Talking.
No. 20 Michael Cardew by Katharine Pleydeii-Bouverie. Glazes, Beginning at the Beginning by Paul Barron.
No . 24 Michael Casson - Man in the middle of th e road by Tony Birks. Reduced Glazes in Electric Kilns - Part 1 .
No. 25 Ruth Duckworth - A great original. Internation al Ceramics Symposium, Tennessee, 1973. Reduced Glazes in Electric Kilns- Part 2.
No . 26 Mary Keepax by Rosalind Sutton . A traditional pottery in Northern Siam by Barbara Harding . Slip Decoration at the Coxwold Pottery by Peter Dick .
Next Issue Mo Jupp by Fiona Adamczewski . The technique of Slab Building by Joan Hepworth . The Pueblo Indian Potters by Val Barry .
Ceramic Review, 5 Belsize Lane, London NW3 5AD MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS Annual subscription (six issues) £2 .50 Overseas rate £3.00 surface mail, by International Money Order only Air mail rates on application. Single copy 35p. By post 42p. Overseas 52p.
Opinions expressed are those of contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Craftsmen Potters Association. ©Ceramic Review 1974 No articles may be reprorluced without the Editors' permission.
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