Archive for the ‘Finds’ Category

Finds #4 – Alice Mylie Peppin Bowl

Alice Mylie Peppin Bowl

In what turned out to be a nice little purple patch for my treasure hunting I turned up this little Tasmanian gem in a local op shop while on the way to the post office.

Made by Alice Mylie Peppin (know as Mylie Peppin) in 1953 and hand painted with what looks to me to be a Fuchsia type floral design. I have a 10 pieces of Mylie’s works and although this is the oldest piece of hers that I own her body of works go back to the 1930’s and extend right through to the early 1990s.

In that time she achieved so much. She went from being a student Tasmanian pottery icon Maude Poynter to runnning a small commercial pottery from her back yard. She traveled overseas and spend time working and studying in England. She ran the Killiney potters group and managed to fit in a few pottery classes too. To say she kept herself busy was probably an understatement.

Forever the great experimenter it would have been sometimes hard to know who was learning more in her classes, the teacher or the student.

This willingness to experiment combined with a career lasting some 60 years means there is an interesting range or works to collect if you can find them. Perhaps unfairly, this mish-mash of styles has lead to a common phrase being used in conversation about Mylie’s works around dealers and collectors in Hobart and that is “The Good, The Bad and the Ugly”.

I do fear however that a large portion of “The Ugly” out there may be either poor imitations of her works or student potters who by coincidence have the same initials. I do know of at least one working potter with the same initials A.M. Penprase who was producing pottery towards the end of Mylie’s career. Thats not to say it’s ugly. It just must be noted that there are other AMPs out there.

This confusion with initials was a problem early on for a young Mylie Peppin who shared the same initials with her teacher Maude Poynter. This prompted Mylie to adopt a distinguishing mark of her own. To differentiate her works from her teachers she inscribed her works with a picture of a small hat with a feather stuck in it.

It’s not certain when Mylie stopped using her hat cypher but my pot from 1953 is pretty late for this mark.

Maybe you have to be Tasmanian to appreciate Mylie’s works. All I know is since moving from Sydney 5 years ago I have certainly developed a real affection for her style.

Tim

Mylie Peppin Base Marks

Finds #2 – Diana Waltzing Matilda Jug (UPDATE)

Just a quick update to to my May 1st 2011 post Finds #2 – Diana Waltzing Matilda Jug where I asked if anyone had a spare musical mechanism from a busted jug to replace the one mine was missing.

Well you wouldn’t believe it but I went to a local auction and what did I see but a box lot containing a badly broken Waltzing Matilda jug with it’s mechanism still in place. The replacement is not perfect but it works. The original plywood backing board has suffered an attack by some wood worm but it’s still holding together just nicely.

Not only did I get the mechanism for a price I was more than happy to pay but also thrown in with the lot were 2 Marutomo ware Don Bradman mugs one in perfect condition and another one in a broken but repairable state.

See! All good things come to those who wait.

On that subject I’ve been waiting a long time for a piece of Maude Poynter to turn up. Just sayin…….

Tim

Original Diana Musical Movement

Finds #3 – Derek Smith Pedestal Bowl

Gold lustre Derek Smith Pedestal Bowl.

With a full time job and helping with my partners Salamanca market stall on Saturdays it’s not often these days that I get a chance to do a little snooping around the op shops, and Antique shops of Hobart. Rarer than finding the time to go treasure hunting is, finding a treasure when I do go hunting.

I am very happy to report that recently I did have had a chance to get to a shop or two (albeit on the way home from a doctors appointment) and I DID find a treasure indeed! The Derek Smith pedestal vase pictured above is the latest addition to my all too long list of keepers (for the moment).

Standing about 16cm high and 13cm across the top it’s not a terribly imposing piece but it’s big enough to get noticed especially since it’s more than 3/4 gilded and mirror reflective!

There is not much I can add to the Derek Smith story that isn’t already covered by Judith at Australian Pottery at Bemboka on her Australian Pottery 1960’s to Date blog here: Known potter #10: Derek Smith.

Over on Flickr you will find the Identifying Australian Pottery 1960s to Date group which is also run by Judith which had a dedicated Astrix (*) topic dedicated to Derek Smith and a comprehensive list of the marks used throughout his career here: * Derek Smith.

Derek Smith is a Tasmanian icon of modern pottery surpassed only by Les Blakebrough in his celebrity to the point that if you were to tell a shop keeper down here that you collected Modern Tasmanian pottery the answer almost invariably comes back “do you collect Blakebrough or Derek Smith?” although having said that it can be a bit difficult to get anyone down here to look past the standard Campbell and McHugh.

Tim

Derek Smith Potters Mark

Finds #2 – Diana Waltzing Matilda Jug

Now, I can’t say I have too many pieces of Diana pottery in my collection.

The number of Diana pieces that have made it onto the “Keepers” list is even smaller (I think seeing a bit of Diana’s Nefertiti stoneware everywhere has kinda put me off the brand. Having said that one of my other Diana keepers is from the Nefertiti range. But that’s a story for another day).

This jug, my most recent find, has most certainly worked its way onto my list of keepers and is fast becoming a favourite of mine.

Modeled by Tony Vacek for the Diana Pottery of Marrickville NSW in 1951, this jug stands a substantial 20cm high and is marked “D51” under the first sheep’s head to signify the year of manufacture. There are 2 or 3 different colourways available and it is said that less than 1000 around 6000 were produced in the nearly 2 years they were in production. What the split was between colour variants I don’t know, safe to say they are all hard to find.

The jug has a recess in  the base for a musical movement which would have played Waltzing Matilda when lifted up. The movements were imported from Switzerland and were so expensive and difficult to obtain that many were sold half price without it, so it’s no surprise this jug doesn’t have one (if you have a spare movement or busted jug with a movement let me know, lol).

There is also a Waltzing Matilda musical mug as a companion to the jug which also came in at least 2 different colour variants. As these mugs and jugs are reasonably rare and highly desirable,  prices these days are substantial so make sure you have plenty of folding stuff in your wallet if you are chasing a complete set. It almost brings a tear to my eye to hear my Dad recall in the early 1990’s a friend had 5 or 6 of these jugs and couldn’t give  them away! How times have changed! What’s worse is the stories of how many Grace Seccombe animals my folks sold in the 80’s for next to nothing! Argh!!

Post Script: Thanks to Tony from the New Zealand Pottery Forum for pointing out Mirek Smisek’s involvement in the design of this jug. The following is an excerpt from the Mirek Smisek – 60 Years, 60 Pots exhibition catalogue:

“We made about 6,000. They were so popular; you have no idea. I did it with Tony Vacek, who was a sculptor. I designed the colour scheme. The colour was painted on, then rubbed off, so that it stayed only in the deeper part, which made it very clear, creating a sculptural feel. Two Czechs designing a Waltzing Matilda jug – the irony of it.” p9, Mirek Smisek – 60 Years 60 Pots,Mahara Gallery, Waikanae,2009

Finds #1 – Essexware Pastille Burner

Well, it’s only taken me 7 years of collecting Aussie Pottery but last month I finally acquired my first piece of Essexware. I know it’s not the greatest example of what Essexware was capable of, but still a sweet little piece nonetheless. The piece was sold to me as an “Australian Pottery Pie Funnel” which made me chuckle a little I must admit. I have seen a few for sale in the past and they have been described as Pastille Burners or ashtrays. I think the absence of a “rest” for your ciggy quickly rules out the ashtray idea though.

Standing only 9cm high this piece is lovingly hand painted and fully signed to the base “Essexware Leura”.

According to Geoff Ford’s Encyclopedia of Australian Potter’s Marks (1st ed pg67);  Essexware was started in 1945 (somewhere between 1951 and 1954 is more likely though) by Gordon and Irene Dunstan in Leura NSW. The pottery was in operation until 1957 when it was completely destroyed by bushfire. The timing of the fire was unfortunate for Norm Sherratt who had quit his job with Diana and was due to start work at Essexware the week after the fire hit. Norm went on to work for Studio Anna for a short period before taking a job with Wembley Ware in Perth.

Some of the potters who worked at Essexware were Adele Durie, Rudolf Planter, Thomas Alban, Beverley Bray, Tony Priest, and Marjory Zabell.

While my little house is quite collectible, the most desirable pieces are covered in amazing Aboriginal themed artworks and signed by the Artists. At its best, Essexware stands tall even when compared to the best of the Boyds and Studio Anna.

For those interested in reading more about Essexware this is a a blog dedicated to the potteries, people and wares: Essexware Ponderings

The blog is unique as it shows many photographs of the potters at work and play in the late 1950’s. It’s great to be able to put a face to the name when so often in this area of collecting the name is all that remains.