Roland Heath - Designer 1908 - 1995

I am very pleased to add a second biography to the blog. Roland Heath was a designer at Crown Ducal in the 1920's who was involved in designing and producing the Radiance Lustre series of designs for the company in 1927. Roland's granddaughter, Suzanne has written this biography and kindly offered it to be published on the blog so that others with in interest in ceramic history can know more about one of Crown Ducal's designers.

Roland Heath

Roland was born in 1908 to William & Sarah Heath at 2, Lindley Street, Stoke.  He was the youngest of 5 children, all of which were very musical.  In 1918 they moved to 41, Rushton Road, Cobridge.

Roland was a talented artist, with a flair for design, and there is a record of him first working as a ‘messenger’ at Burslem College of Art in 1921, only 13 years old.  In 1923 he won a Senior Art scholarship from the Borough of Stoke-on-Trent, and he spent 3 years studying there under Gordon Forsyth.  From 1924 – 1928 college records show Roland as a ‘senior designer’, presumably as he also worked for Gray’s Pottery while he was a student.  Also at the college at the same time was Susie Cooper (a distant cousin from his mother’s side), who is on the register from 1919 – 1925 as a ‘pottery designer’, and Clarice Cliff, who can be seen in the records as working there in 1924 as a ‘pottery decorator’. 

Some of Forsyth’s students copied or used his techniques including the lustre glazes. Forsyth developed the Gloria Lustre for Gray’s in the early 1920s while Roland Heath was his student. An example of this can be seen at the V&A, with Roland Heath credited as the painter, Forsyth as the designer, c. 1925:   

https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1261257/gloria-lustre-bowl-forsyth-gordon  

Roland Heath left Gray’s and went to work for Crown Ducal in around 1927. At Crown Ducal he developed the Radiance Lustre Glaze (a version of Gray’s Gloria). He is believed to have created 40+ patterns, but nobody knows how many as most of them aren't marked. We still have a couple of identical vases, which I seem to remember my mother telling me were ‘practice‘ vases.  These have his RHEATH mark which can be seen on other pieces of this period:

 

Practice vase

Base of practice vase

In 1927 Roland supplemented his income by selling many of his designs for Christmas cards, sold through the British and Dominion School of Drawing in London. Some panels were bought by the Association of Home Crafts Studio Ltd (we have letters and receipts for some of these).

In 1929 he obtained a position as an artist with S Hancock & Sons of Burton Place, Hanley.  At the end of 1930, Roland left his job in Hanley and went to work for a design studio in Wembley, lodging with his sister Dorothy.  In 1933 he took a position with Cinema Signs.  I have these in a file of his: 

Roland's printed designs from 1930's

Roland's printed designs from 1930's

In 1934 he married Peggy Hunt (see photo) and moved to Harrow. They had 2 children, Gillian & Robert.

Peggy and Roland

Here is a photo of grandpa holding my mother Gillian.

Gillian & Roland

I don’t have any information about where he worked or what he did from then on. The only ceramics we have of Roland’s are a hand-painted coffee set, and the vases above.  This coffee set has a more curly mark (see photos). I’m afraid I don’t have dates for these.  Unfortunately, when he got older and his mind was not so clear, we were very saddened that he had given away a lot of his pieces which we would have treasured!

Coffee set

 

Coffee set basemarks

Granpa was a lovely, gentle man.  I have many happy memories of visiting him when I was young,  He was a very creative man, who loved amateur dramatics, singing and playing the piano. My mother said she grew up in a house where there were always people coming over, singing and playing music into the night.  He would always be so pleased to see us and wanted to hear us play the piano for him.

Sadly, my mother died in September, so I am unable to find out any more history than what I have here.  I do have a folder of some of his old artwork though (no dates).

 

 

 

 

Charlotte Rhead - Fakes, Reproductions, Replicas

It is depressing to have to revisit this topic but it does not seem to be documented elsewhere. I believe it is a worthwhile since there always seems to be one or more examples on ebay at present.

This content is copied from my now deleted website which means that some readers may have seen all this before. However, there will be newcomers who might benefit from it being republished.

Basemarks found on reproductions

Items of pottery with backstamps similar to the ones pictured above are still circulating. These marks are composites of backstamps used by AG Richardson Crown Ducal Ware and HJ Wood Bursley Ware. Pottery with these types of backstamps are believed to be of modern manufacture. If you find them attractive then fair enough - but note that they are not the work of Charlotte Rhead, (1885-1947).

Below are examples of fakes/reproductions that carry these base marks. My apologies for the poor image quality but the pictures are from 15 years ago - however the same pots are doing the rounds today.

Examples of fake/reproduction pots bearing Rhead/Crown Ducal base marks

Most alarming is that fakes of pattern 4921 - Golden Leaves, have appeared on shapes 207 and 243, as well as more modern shapes. They look to be examples of the real thing, but if you check the backstamp markings and it includes a transfer “Charlotte Rhead” signature you will know it is a reproduction. Also the chargers are only 11.5” in diameter. Pattern 4921 - Golden Leaves is thought to be the only Rhead design that has been reproduced and so is the most likely to catch people out - but the items are moulded not tube-lined. All the other fakes/reproductions don't look anything like Crown Ducal Rhead designs or even Crown Ducal shapes and of course the raised decoration is moulded not tube-lined.

Shapes seen faked with pattern 4921 - Golden Leaves

The history of how these items with Charlotte Rhead signatures came about was documented in an article by the Maine Antique Digest back in 2004 but is not visible online now so here is a screen capture from then. It should be readable if you enlarge the jpg file.

Text from Maine Antique Digest

If you want to be really depressed here is a link to a web archived page of the vendor of these "reproductions" from 2004.

http://web.archive.org/web/20040628224243/http://www.lynostrading.co.uk/artdeco4.htm

At the bottom of the page you will see a 11.5" "charger stamped with original Charlotte Rhead Crown Ducal mark. Very very collectable"

Well, let's hope not.

Charlotte Rhead tube-lined designs using more than one slip colour

Whilst gathering material for the post on stitched edged designs I got distracted into looking at Charlotte Rhead’s tube-lined designs that used more than one colour slip. I have a feeling that this may have been quite a big deal at the time. We know that pattern 3049 is Charlotte’s first design that uses more than one colour slip clay. The stitched edge Cotswold tableware in orange and black became a good long running seller, possibly in production for 20 years.

I think that Charlotte put a lot of effort into exploiting the success of this technique to create other designs with multiple slip colours. None of these efforts came close to the success of pattern 3049, but I think she was motivated by being able to produce a product her competitors could not match. In the 1930s the pottery companies were copying each others designs without let or hindrance. But surely Richardson’s must have had an edge when it came to tube-lining because of Charlotte’s clever designs and her team of tube-liners.

Bernard Bumpus discusses tube-lining with multiple colour slips clays in his article “Tube-line Variations” in the magazine, Antique Collector of December 1985.  He reports how Jack Butler, who succeeded Frederick Rhead as art director at Woods in 1929, may have produced the Galleon charger using slip clay in three colours, (blue, black and brown). The charger is illustrated in the magazine and also a different example in plate 96 of "Collecting Rhead Pottery". The charger would have been made around 1930 and Charlotte would certainly have been aware of it and what other designers were producing with the tube-lining technique.

Jack Butler charger

Her role at Richardson’s was to produce commercial patterns rather than expensive art pottery, so she adapts the idea of multiple colour slip into a simple design that would not stretch the tube-liner too much and could produce it at an acceptable price. It does not appear that any other company was producing tube-lined tableware at this time. This is another example of Charlotte using her artistic skills and her team of tube-lining decorators to create a commercial success that Richardson’s competitors would find difficult to emulate.

Most of the 40-50 or so designs in the pattern books that use more that one slip colour are tableware. This is quite strange since tube-lined decoration is not resilient to the wear and tear of use especially with cutlery. Perhaps that is why the stitched edge Cotswold design was the only one that was popular and practical to use.

The patterns can be said to fit into 4 categories:

• Tableware usually on the Cotswold or Queen Anne shape
• The large salad bowls and platters for the USA market, (also referred to as punch bowls and 17” chargers) 
• Cabinet plates – ie tableware plates decorated with fancy designs for display only
• Fancies using Charlotte Rhead’s typical shapes for tube-lined decorative ware

I do not intend to create a definitive list of all these patterns. Most of the tableware, especially those on the Queen Anne shape have not been seen. Below are those that went into production because they have been seen and photographed.

I have written about some of these patterns before in my post on stitched edge tableware. In particular there are comments about 3049, 3172, 3260 and notes on some of the as yet undiscovered designs.
https://rhead-crownducal.blogspot.com/2017/03/tube-lined-stitched-edged-tableware.html

3049 (Niva) Stitched edge in orange & black on Cotswold tableware and large salad bowls and platters.

Pattern 3049 Niva

 3169 Tree centre with large stitched edge in orange & black on large salad bowls and platters.

Pattern 3169

3170 Dragon centre with large stitched edge in orange & black on large salad bowls and platters.

3172 Tree centre with large stitched edge in Danube and matt blues & salmon on large salad bowls and platters. A special pattern because it is believed to be Charlotte's only Crown Ducal design with 3 slip colours.

Pattern 3172 Tree Centre

3187 Trailing feather in orange & black on Cotswold tableware. Probably a very difficult pattern to tube-line. Even though the design is simple it must have required a skillful hand to tube-line the second colour adjacent to the first.

Pattern 3187

3191 Galleon in Danube and matt blues on Cotswold tableware and large salad bowls and platters.

Pattern 3191 Galleon

3205 Trailing laurel border and dots in Danube and matt blues on large salad bowls and platters. The picture shows the same design in single colour black slip, the pattern number of which is unknown but demonstrates the design was produced. Pattern 3205 would look like the border of 3218.

Pattern 3205

3212 Alternate lines in orange & black on Cotswold tableware.

Pattern 3212

3218 Blossom centre with trailing laurel border and dots in Danube and matt blues on large salad bowls and platters.

Pattern 3218 Blossom

3257 Blossom centre with large stitched edge in Danube and matt blues on large salad bowls and platters.

Pattern 3257 Blossom

3258 Blossom centre with large stitched edge in orange & black on large salad bowls and platters.

Pattern 3258 Blossom

3260 Florentine centre, intertwined stems and dentilled edge in Danube and matt blues on No3 cabinet plate.

Pattern 3260

3582 Y shaped edge motif edge in orange & black on Queen Anne tableware.

Pattern 3582

3584 (Perth) Scrolls and stars in orange & black on Queen Anne tableware.

Pattern 3584 Perth

4517 (Blossom) in Danube and matt blues with off blue glaze on fancies.

Pattern 4517 Blossom

4538 (Blossom) in Danube and matt blues with snow glaze on fancies.

Pattern 4538 Blossom

4898 Paired short lines in orange & black on Cotswold tableware.

Pattern 4898

4901 Dot & dash line in orange & black on Cotswold tableware.

Pattern 4901

4902 Wavy lines and dots orange & black on Cotswold tableware.

Pattern 4902

Arcadian Glazes, Dripware & Mottled Glazes

I recently came across a Crown Ducal dripware glazed vase. Although I do not collect these I usually look closely to see if I can find an example that matches the descriptions in the Crown Ducal pattern books. The glaze on this one matched the description and picture for Glaze No. 84.

The vase will date to 1940/1942 because it has the AGR7 type backstamp but the style is a reprise of the Arcadian Glazes range from Crown Ducal in 1929.

I have not found any pattern numbers for the Arcadian Glazes and later dripware productions of the 1930s & 1940s and so they are quite difficult to catalogue. But there are 11 pages in one of the Crown Ducal pattern books that document “Mottled Glazes Etc.” from Nos. 10 to 95. The notes for each glaze vary from nil to a brief description specifying glaze names and method of application. There are a few watercolour sketches for some of the glazes and this is where I was lucky with my purchase as it is one of the few illustrated ones.

Below are images of the vase and also a picture file of the transcribed list of “Mottled Glazes” from the Crown Ducal pattern book. You will probably need to save the list image in order to read it. The first column is the pattern book glaze number. The second column is whether or not there is small water colour sketch of the design. The description is my best attempt to try and transcribe the pencil annotations.

Glaze No. 84 on a shape 173 vase

List of mottled glazes as transcribed from Crown Ducal pattern book

Back to the beginning of the story, the ‘Arcadian Glazes’ range of dripware from Crown Ducal was introduced in the October 1929 edition of the Pottery Gazette.

The typically verbose and enthusiastic writing about the ware begins as follows:

"A. G. Richardson & Co.,, Ltd., Gordon Pottery, Tunstall, whose new London showroom at 46, Holborn Viaduct, E. C. 1, in control of Green Bros. & Edis, is now open, replete with a full range of the company’s appealing productions in all departments, have brought out quite recently a really admirable series of broken and variegated glaze effects in harmonious colourings, to be known under the name of “Arcadian Glazes.” On the production of lines such as these, as an adjunct to their staple trade in useful and decorative tablewares, the firm in question are to be warmly congratulated, for although the new art glazed wares are of a high order, portraying characteristics which exemplify sound technique, the prices at which they are being offered to the trade are unquestionably reasonable. We think we are justified in emphasising the fact that the new decorations, although they are undoubtedly the result of playful manipulations of colour amalgams, are in no sense to be regarded as “amateurish”; nor are they likely to prove of an ephemeral order, for they are distinctive and dignified, and worthy of being allotted a leading place in the display of any good-class china shop."

The article goes on at some length in the same vein with the only significant point of interest being that the Arcadian Glazes are likely to be good sellers for the 1929 Christmas trade, beyond and for the overseas market too. The image from the Pottery Gazette is reproduced below.

The "Arcadian Glazes" from the Pottery Gazette

Below is an illustrated advertisement from The Sphere newspaper of 1932. It is part of a larger feature advertisement for Crown Ducal being sold at the Harrods department store. It is helpful that the shapes can be identified and that the prices are included.

Arcadian Glazes being promoted at Harrods in The Sphere of 9 November 1932

Because I have no collection of Arcadian glazed pots I will use images found from searching the net. I hope the owner of these two pictures does not mind me reusing them, they clearly have a collecting passion for the subject.

Arcadian Glazes

If you have been able to save and view the list of mottled glazes you will find that vases 3 & 6, (from the left) on the bottom row in the picture above are most likely to be Glaze No. 13 (Blue 6336 & Flame 1180).

Arcadian Glazes

Likewise vases 3 & 4, (from the left) on the top row in the picture above are most likely to be Glaze No. 19 (Flame 1180 & Green 6444).

Those are two easy ones but after that it becomes quite hard to link decoration with text which is rather ambiguous. To pursue this as a project one would need to incorporate known information from the main pattern books, where very occasionally these mottled glaze numbers are used in the description of individual patterns.

These are ones that I have found:

Glaze 60 used for pattern 4964
A freehand enamelled fancy, illustrated as a jug vase in shape 226/227/228/X8 style. The design is the inverted border of Charlotte's Arabian scroll pattern with green spout, bands and handle, scarlet and orange arches and blue circles. The vase rims are dashed and a row of Charlotte's painted stitches below the lower band.

Glaze 61 used for pattern 4963
A freehand enamelled fancy, illustrated as a jug vase in shape 245. Like above. The design is the inverted border of Charlotte's Arabian scroll pattern with blue bands and handles, puce and orange arches and pink and orange circles. The vase rims are dashed and a row of Charlotte's painted stitches below the lower band.

Glaze 62 used for pattern 4962
A freehand enamelled fancy, illustrated as a jug vase in shape X20 style. Like above. The design is the inverted border of Charlotte's Arabian scroll pattern with orange spout and handles, green bands, blue and orange arches and green and scarlet circles. The vase rims are dashed and a row of Charlotte's painted stitches below the lower band.

Glaze 64 used for pattern 5650
A difficult to find tube-lined design by Charlotte Rhead which in the past I have called "Abstract Trellis" but I may need to rename it as the phrase "Tube Lined Check" occurs both in the numbered pattern book and the glaze pattern book. The description for Glaze 65 where the green only occurs as the inside rinse, or the base of chargers more accurately describes the known examples of pattern 5650. Of the few examples I have seen, none had green on the outside or face of the design. As an aside, the designer of The Bowes Museum display catalogue, (2018) chose the charger centre of pattern 5650 for the front cover. Maybe not typical Charlotte Rhead style but definitely striking!

Glaze 65

Glaze 72 used for pattern 6063
A freehand enamelled fancy, illustrated as a vase in shape 133/129 style. The design is of a small branch with  green leaves turning orange-brown.

Glaze 72 used for pattern 6189
The popular tube-lined design by Charlotte Rhead No. 6189 "Mexican".

Glaze 72 used for pattern 6198
Another tube-lined design by Charlotte Rhead No. 6198 "Basket". 

Glaze 78 used for pattern 5981
A print and enamel design almost certainly by Charlotte Rhead  for fancies "Floretta". A colourful glaze that Charlotte tried to use with tube-lined designs. The most notable being the "Iris" charger but also with a variation of the "Persian Leaf/Taragona" patterns. I have discussed the use of this glaze in a previous post. https://rhead-crownducal.blogspot.com/2013/08/charlotte-rhead-iris-charger.html

Interestingly, the only example I know of pattern 5650, with the pattern number on the base, which should use glaze 64 or 65 is in fact decorated with Glaze 78.

Various items that use Glaze 78

Glaze 79 used for pattern 5982
Another tube-lined design by Charlotte Rhead No. 5982 "Circular Fruits".

Glaze 83 used for pattern 6068
A freehand enamelled fancy, illustrated as a vase in shape 133/129 style. The design is of  a flock of flying birds in a V formation with cloud outlines behind.

Since the glazes are not illustrated in the main pattern books the above descriptions are only of much use when an example has been seen. So glazes 64, 65, 72, 78 & 79 are the only ones from that source that can be positively identified.

It would be good to find out more about this subject and create a definitive record of Crown Ducal glazes but I fear much of the information may be lost. Perhaps someone who understands ceramic glazes better than I, and has a collection of Crown Ducal Arcadian glazes can marry up what they see with the glaze list above.

The Bowes Museum - Summer 2018

The Charlotte Rhead: Between Art and Industry display at The Bowes Museum has now been dismantled and the items safely returned home. Sad that it is over, but we have been most fortunate in being able to show off part of our collection to a wider audience especially in such a prestigious location. We say a very big thank you to The Bowes Museum for hosting the display and in particular, Howard Coutts, Keeper of Ceramics, who was instrumental in making it all happen and to Catherine Dickinson and Vincent Shawcross for presenting it so beautifully.

We would also like to thank Howard for encouraging Ian to give a short talk on collecting Charlotte Rhead pottery to the Northern Ceramics Society at their meeting on June 20^th in The Bowes Museum. It did feel like gate crashing a 17^th to 19^th century ceramics party but hope a little 20^th century content provided an interesting distraction.

In addition, it was most enjoyable being able to produce the booklet to accompany the event and that will always be a fine souvenir of the display. Many thanks to the team at Curious12 in Bishop Auckland and we have no hesitation in recommending them to those searching for help with a design and print project. They exceeded our expectations with their imaginative design flair, advice on printing format and amiable patience with all the proof reading niggles.

All that remains is to show some pictures of the display especially for Charlotte Rhead enthusiasts who were unable to visit Barnard Castle this summer.

Ian & Margaret

PS  It is only by chance, but the display cabinet being adjacent to the Jacques Gruber stained glass panel is quite striking. The similarities of line and colour between Charlotte’s pottery and Gruber’s leaded glass of a decade earlier, (c.1925) is quite remarkable.

The Bowes Museum links

http://thebowesmuseum.org.uk/About-Us/News/Detail/ArtMID/3381/ArticleID/4378/Charlotte-Rhead-Between-Art-Industry

https://www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk/Exhibitions/2018/Charlotte-Rhead-Between-Art-Industry

Booklet preview link & Curious 12

http://poshet.net/post/1794288563619926794_3232282531