Christopher Dresser / Benham & Froud Aesthetic Movement Kettle c. 1885
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Christopher Dresser / Benham & Froud Aesthetic Movement Kettle c. 1885
CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
BENHAM & FROUD London, England
Kettle c. 1885
Copper, brass, wood handle and finial
Marks: maker’s cipher
Illustrated: Minor Masters of the XIXth Century: Christopher Dresser, Industrial Designer, by N. Pevsner, (Architectural Review, 1937), p. 184, illus. 1; Truth, Beauty, Power: Dr. Christopher Dresser 1834-1904, exhib. cat. Historical Design, Inc. (New York, 1998) p. 67.
Christopher Dresser / Linthorpe Art Pottery Rare Aesthetic Movement “Gourd” Vase 1879-1882
CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
LINTHORPE ART POTTERY, Middlesbrough
HENRY TOOTH Artistic Manager Linthorpe (1842-1918) UK
“Gourd Vase” 1879-1882
Glazed Earthenware
***Extremely rare Dresser / Linthorpe model.
Marked: LINTHORPE, Chr. Dresser (facsimile signature) HT, no. 326
Illustrated: Christopher Dresser: Truth, Beauty, Power exh. cat. (New York: Historical Design, 1998) p.75; illustrated in two drawings for gourd vases in Dresser’s 1881 design and account book under heading “Aug. 29, 1881. Sent to J. Harrison Esq. 41 Designs for Linthorpe.”
H: 7 3/4″
The contrasts in Dresser’s designs for different materials showed how his approach to design was also shaped by the properties and nature of a material. In 1879 Dresser was appointed art director at the newly established Linthorpe pottery, near Middlesbrough. Founded by John Harrison, a local businessman, the pottery’s aim was to use local clay to provide jobs for local men. Dresser’s design for the moulds for the pottery were inspired by a wide range of cultures from Japan, Peru, Mexico, Morocco and Ancient British forms. These very striking pieces, with the metal oxides in the complex and innovative glazes providing the only decoration. All of his designs were impressed with a facsimile signature. When Linthorpe closed in 1889, its moulds were acquired by a rival, Ault Pottery in Derbyshire. In 1893, Dresser signed a contract with Ault for new designs specifying that each pot should be marked with his facsimile signature.
Two other examples are recorded but with complex Victorican engraving.
Illustrated: Christopher Dresser and Japan, exh. cat. ed. by Koriyami City Museum of Art, Brain Trust Inc. (Koriyami 2002), cat. no. 114, p. 138; Christopher Dresser, ein Viktorianischer Designer, 1834-1904, (Cologne: Kunstgewerbemuseum der Stadt Köln, 1981) cat. no. 15; Truth, Beauty, Power: Dr. Christopher Dresser 1834-1904, exhib. cat. Historical Design, Inc. (New York, 1998) p. 33.
Christopher Dresser / James Couper & Sons Aventurine blown glass Clutha vase c. 1895
CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
JAMES COUPER & SONS Glasgow
Clutha vase c. 1895
Aventurine blown glass with iridescent gold streaks and internal bubbles
Illustration: Christopher Dresser, Widar Halen (Oxford: Phaidon, Christies Limited, 1990) p. 196, illust. 228.
For more information: Liberty Style: the classic years, 1898-1910, Mervyn Levy (New York: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc., 1986); Christopher Dresser: the power of design, Christopher Wilk (New York: Zurland – Zabar, 1993).
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