Product Description
Christopher Dresser / Old Hall “Persia Pattern” Aesthetic Movement Dinner Plate c. 1861-1886

CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
OLD HALL EARTHENWARE CO. (1861-1886) Staffordshire, UK
“Persia Pattern” dinner plate c. 1861-1886
Overall cream gloss glazed octagonal-shaped earthenware dinner plate from the “Persian” pattern with transfer-printed and over-glazed ornate foliate motif; each corner contains two shallow indentations for condiment use.
Marks: Old Hall and Persia Marks
W: 9 15/16″
The identical plate in the “Persia Pattern” can be found in the collection of the Wolfsonian. A soup plate in the identical “Persia Pattern” can be found in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum.
Christopher Dresser / Old Hall “Persia Pattern” Aesthetic Movement Dinner Plate c. 1861-1886
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).
H: 19 3/8 ”
CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
MINTON, Stoke-on-Trent, England
“Cloisonné” vase 1867
Glazed porcelain with polychrome enamel decoration and gilding
Marks: MINTON, date cipher for 1867
Illustration: Truth, Beauty, Power: Dr. Christopher Dresser 1834-1904, exhibition catalogue, Historical Design, Inc. (New York, 1998) p. 78.
H: 9 7/8”
CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
LINTHORPE ART POTTERY, Middlesbrough, England
HENRY TOOTH Artistic Manager Linthorpe (1842-1918) UK
“Flaring Lip” Pitcher 1879-1882
Glazed earthenware
Marks: LINTHORPE, Chr. Dresser (facsimile signature),
HT, no. 346
Illustrated: Christopher Dresser, by Widar Halén (Oxford: Phaidon, 1990), illus. 185, p.163; Truth, Beauty, Power: Dr. Christopher Dresser 1834-1904, exhibition catalogue Historical Design, Inc. (New York, 1998) p. 76.
H: 9 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.
CHRISTOPHER DRESSER (1834-1904) UK
HEATH & MIDDLETON Birmingham, England
Petite claret jug 1887
Sterling silver mounts with hinged covers to both top and spout, glass, ebony handle
Marks: JTH & JHM in a four-lobed cartouche, London assay marks for 1887 (“M” in a shield), Vienna import mark (conjoined AV in a 6-sided cartouche)
Illustrated: Industrial Design Unikate Serienerzeugnisse, Die Neue Sammlung ein neuer Museumstyp des 20. Jahrhunderts, Hans Wichmann (Munich: Prestel-Verlag, 1985), p. 131; Christopher Dresser, ein Viktorianischer Designer, 1834-1904 (Cologne: Kunstgewerbemuseum der Stadt Köln, 1981), p. 73, ill. 86, cat. no. 23; Industrial Design, John Heskett (New York and Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1980), p. 24, illus. 9; Christopher Dresser 1834-1904, Michael Collins (London: Camden Arts Centre, 1979), p. 171, cat.no.12.
H: 6” x Dia: 4”