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Showing posts with label Michael Pratt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michael Pratt. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Late to the debate

I either have the best timing in the world or the worst. Before I was even aware there was a raging debate about who designed Interplay for Iroquois, it ended.

According to Michael Pratt at modish, collectors argued for years about the possibility that either Russel Wright or Ben Seibel designed the line, but they could come to no consensus.

A few years ago, Pratt found a mention of Wright as the designer in a trade journal article on tableware settings. He had also found another reference stating that Wright had created a new bowl for the line. Still, collectors were skeptical.

Eventually, however, Pratt found an article in the September 6, 1952, New York Times entitled "Dinnerware Mixed, Plain and Patterned," which stated definitively that the dinnerware was designed by Russel Wright. The article went on to explain that the solid pieces were meant to be mixed and matched with the patterns.

As far as I can tell, the line was produced in solid white and colors called Charcoal and Golden Melon. Patterns were called Arabesque, Fleur de Lis and Woodvine (sometimes referred to by sellers as Leaves Berries)


Interplay coffee pot (left) in charcoal and white after dinner coffee pot (right)
modish.net

Interplay coffee pot and after dinner coffee pot in Golden Melon
modish.net
Interplay Fleur de Lis

Interplay Arabesque
modish.net

Interplay Woodvine
modish.net

An offshoot of the Interplay line is Carrera Modern, a string/drizzle pattern which utilizes most of the same shapes.


Carrera Modern ad
ohioriverpottery.com

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Delightful dinnerware

I recently bought Michael Pratt's Mid-Century Modern Dinnerware: A Pictorial Guide, and it is truly a feast for the eyes. The book contains hundreds of images, most of which depict far more of the pieces from each line than I could find on the Internet.  For those of you who are regulars at modish.net, this is a must-have reference book, and for those of you who love mid-century dinnerware but haven't discovered the site yet, I urge you to put a visit to it on your to-do list.

Pratt, an avid collector who owns almost ten thousand pieces of mid-century dinnerware, has written an amazing overview of the tableware designs of the leading potteries from the 1940s through the 1960s. Here are a few of the patterns mentioned in the book.

Brock Desert Mist
modish.net
Canonsburg Pottery Americana
etsy.com - DeliaWach
Denwar Bantu
modish.net
Hollydale Malibu Modern
thecollectorsdream.net
Gracetone Orbit
fotolog.com
Harkerware White Clover by Russel Wright
moodindigo.com
Eva Zeisel for Western Stoneware
liveauctioneers.com

Additionally, here are some of the patterns that we have (or have had until recently) for sale in the store.

Paul McCobb for Jackson China
Plate and bowl are the Brown Matchsticks pattern.
I haven't identified the stripe.
Syracuse China Jackstraws
We have several pieces of this pattern in our Etsy store.
Canonsburg Pottery Temporama
We also have several pieces of this pattern for sale in our Etsy store.
A reader of the blog just bought a full set of this
Taylor Smith & Taylor Cathay from us on eBay! :)
(Thanks again for your purchase!)

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Royal, yes...Star Glow, maybe not

I just made a discovery that will probably surprise many of you as much as it did me. I was looking for replacement prices for what I thought was our set of Royal Star Glow, but all I could find was mustard-colored cups and accessories, so further research was necessary.

I found a thread on the MODish site, which I consider a reliable source, and as it turns out, our set isn't Star Glow at all, but an earlier Royal pattern called Crystal, which had pattern-decorated cups and accessories and a much more atomic shape than the later Star Glow. Crystal was produced in the mid-to-late 50s, while Star Glow was the result of a redesign/rename in the mid-60s and was only produced with the mustard-colored cups and accessories, as well as with redesigned round berry bowls.

Michael Pratt of MODish is very thorough and insists on ephemera to substantiate claims about patterns. After reviewing old newspaper ads, he was convinced that Crystal did, in fact, predate Star Glow. Pratt said of the discovery, "It really is clear that our knowledge of mid-century modern ceramics is not static but increases as new sources of material are uncovered."



1950s Royal Crystal...not Star Glow

Royal Crystal, with pattern-decorated cups and accessories

1960s Star Glow...with mustard cups and redesigned bowls
roberthenryvintage.com

And now I have to find this piece, with a lid that does double duty as a tidbit server. How cool is that?


Royal Crystal casserole with lid that doubles as a tidbit server
modish.net