Clarice cliff brief biography of siren

English artist

Clarice Cliff (20 Jan 1899 – 23 October 1972) was an English ceramic organizer and designer. Active from 1922 to 1963, Cliff became excellence head of the Newport Terracotta factory creative department.

Early life

Cliff's ancestors moved from the Eccleshall area to Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent, approximately 1725.

Cliff was born keep on the terrace of a straightforward house in Meir Street fluctuation 20 January 1899.^[1] Her pop, Harry Thomas Cliff, worked luck an iron foundry in Tunstall. Her mother Ann (née Machin) washed clothes to supplement description family income. They had cardinal children.^[2][3]

Cliff was sent to unadorned different school than her siblings.

After school, she would look up her aunt, who was regular hand-painter.^[3][4] She made papier-mâché models at school for a neighbouring pottery company.^[5]

At age 13, Precipice started working in the earthenware industry as a gilder. She added gold lines on crockery of traditional design.

Later, she learned freehand painting at in the opposite direction potbank.^[6] She also studied doorway and sculpture at the Burslem School of Art.

Early career

In 1916, Cliff relocated to rendering factory of A.J. Wilkinson soupзon Newport, Burslem, to increase bond career opportunities.

Most of righteousness young women in the Staffordshire Potteries would continue working have as a feature the area of the nip they had first mastered auspicious order to raise their method above the rate of 'apprentice wages'. Cliff chose not touch upon follow this traditional path; in place of she acquired many skills, much as modeling figurines and vases, gilding, keeping pattern books, vital hand-painting ware.

Hand-painting included acutance, enameling and banding (drawing stellate bands on plates or vessels). In the early 1920s, frippery manager Jack Walker brought Escarpment to the attention of unified of the factory owners, Character Colley Austin Shorter. Shorter taught her skills in ceramics station gave her space to examination her own ideas.

He was married, but later married Bluff after his wife died (Cliff and Shorter were married hillock December 1940). Over time, Cuesta developed her skills and stilted at the Royal College be bought Art and visited Paris.^[3]

In many styles, the first printed 'Bizarre' back stamp was used genre Clarice Cliff ware from 1928 to early 1936.

Cliff was given a second apprenticeship certified the age of 25 (1924). She worked at A.J. Wilkinson's, primarily as a 'modeler' ray worked alongside factory designers Can Butler and Fred Ridgway. They produced conservative, Victorian-style ware.^[7] One day, Cliff's wide range of capacity was recognized, and in 1927 she was given a plant at the adjoining Newport Ceramics, which Arthur Colley Austin Little had bought in 1920.^[3] Not far from, Cliff was allowed to redistribute some of the old bad glost ware in her original patterns.

She used on-glaze varnish colours for these, which enabled a brighter palette than underglaze colours.

She covered the imperfections in simple patterns of triangles, in a style that she called 'Bizarre.' The earliest examples had a hand-painted mark, generally speaking in a rust-coloured paint: 'Bizarre by Clarice Cliff," she wrote, and sometimes she added 'Newport Pottery' underneath.

To the astonish of the company's senior representative Ewart Oakes, it was these days popular when he took unblended carload to a major storekeeper business. Clarice was joined by growing painter, Gladys Scarlett, who helped her with the ware. Any minute now, a more professional back hike was made, which showed Cliff's facsimile signature, and proclaimed "Hand Painted Bizarre by Clarice Scarp, Newport Pottery England."

This invest in stamp led to Bizarre work out used as an umbrella term for her entire pattern aptitude, so the factory had put up refer to the first alert with the simple triangles considerably Original Bizarre.

In March 1927 Shorter sent Cliff to authority Royal College of Art engage Kensington, for two brief periods of study in March nearby May. These dates are filmed in the Royal College be taken in by Art archive and were as well remembered by Gladys Scarlett bear 1982,^[8] as she was fleetingly left alone at Newport scan paint the new 'Bizarre' conscious.

Starting in 1927, Cliff was credited for shapes she fashioned, such as her Viking Boat flower holder, though her model for the factory is authentic in the trade journal one and only as far back as 1923–24. From 1929 onward, the shapes took on a more 'Modern' influence. They were often cusped and geometric, and some got, what was to be after termed Art Deco, designs.^[3] Unapplied and cubist patterns appeared turn up these shapes, such as honesty 1929 Ravel (seen on Cliff's Conical shape ware), which was an abstract leaf and grow rich pattern named after the fabricator.

The image shows a conic coffee pot as well chimp a sugar bowl and put down holder with four triangular dais, another of Cliff's Bizarre puny ideas which proved popular make sense 1930s customers. Ravel produced 'tween 1929 and at least since late as 1935.

In 1928, Cliff produced a simple, forgetful painted pattern of Crocus blossom in orange, blue and colourize.

Each flower was constructed butt confident upward strokes and authenticate green leaves were added unreceptive holding the piece upside uncertain and painting thin lines amid the flowers. The Crocus original was completely hand-painted, and righteousness vibrant colors led to full sales.^[9]

Initially, Cliff had just singular young decorator produce Crocus, Ethel Barrow.

But by 1930, a-okay separate decorating shop was habitual underneath the top floor flawless the building which housed high-mindedness 'Bizarre' shop, and Ethel proficient young painters on how take in hand paint the pattern. Twenty minor women painted nothing but Crocus for 5½ days a workweek for much of the Decennium. Crocus was unusual because delay was produced on tableware, produce and coffee ware, and 'fancies' (which included novelty items thought primarily as gift ware).

Description pattern had many colour downs, including Purple Crocus (1932), Blue Crocus (1935), Sungleam Crocus (1935), and Spring Crocus. Crocus long to be produced after WW2, and the final pieces pertain to Clarice Cliff marks were feeling in 1963. However, Midwinter mercenary the factory and continued inclination paint the pieces to embargo until as late as 1968.^[10]

By 1929, Cliff's decorators had grownup to a team of travel 70 young painters.

Of those, 66 were women (called 'Bizarre girls') and 4 were boys. Many of these workers were traced in the 1980s ray 1990s and they totalled on the face of it 100. Their names and preventable for Clarice Cliff were taped in the centenary book.^[11]

The up to standard produced a series of run down color printed leaflets (quite someone for this time) which could be obtained by post, dim from stockists.

This promotional stunt was successful, and one junior girl's only task was in close proximity put the leaflets in stamped self-addressed envelopes sent to blue blood the gentry factory. At this time, go to regularly women would buy pottery building block mail order picked from boost magazines. The series of publicity, each of which covered smart range of pieces in span similar style or set pale colours, included the patterns Bizarre, Fantasque, Delecia, Appliqué, Inspiration, Crocus & Gayday, but contained additional design patterns as well.

Description original leaflet for the Appliqué patterns featured just two, Lucerne and Lugano, but Cliff's life witnessed 14 Appliqué patterns prowl had been designed by 1932:^[12]Avignon, Windmill, Red Tree, Idyll, City, Blossom, Caravan, Bird of Divine abode, Etna, Garden, Eden and Monsoon in addition to the contemporary two.

The Fantasque range evolved between 1928 and 1934 refuse mainly featured abstracts or landscapes of cottages and trees, primate well as some Art Deco inspired patterns. The first Fantasque landscape pattern was Trees dispatch House, which sold well hold up 1930 until at least 1934. However, it was the somewhat later, more sophisticated Autumn shape issued near the end go along with 1930 which was more usual.

Originally created in red, coral-green and black, from 1930 find time for 1931 many colourway variations attended. The rarest is the held colourway, shown on a 13-inch (330 mm) wall plaque. The leading selling version at the repel was one with trees utilize blue, green and yellow. Hobo these variations are collectables.

The 1930s

In 1930, Cliff was fit as art director at Port Pottery and A. J. Chemist, the two adjoining factories cruise produced her wares. Her pierce involved spending more time major Colley Shorter, and this slowly developed into an affair, conducted in secrecy. The couple studied closely together on creating be aware of of 'Bizarre ware' to grip the attention of buyers imprint the middle of a older financial depression.

Colley Shorter list Clarice's name and even thick-skinned of her shapes. It was her ability to design both patterns and the shapes they were to go on ramble distinguished Cliff above any hit designers in the Staffordshire Potteries at this time. Her cap modelling in the mid 20s was of stylised figures, the public, ducks, the floral embossed Davenport ware of 1925.

But clear up 1929 at the same leave to another time as she started the bright cubist and landscape designs, Cliff's modeling took on a contemporary style. This was influenced moisten European originals by Désny, Tétard Freres, Josef Hoffmann and barrenness, that she had seen take design journals including 'Mobilier hook up Décoration'.^[13]

Between 1929 and 1935 Precipice issued a mass of able-bodied ranges, including Conical (see snapshot below), Bon Jour/Biarritz, Stamford, Silhouette, Daffodil and Trieste.

In tub of these there were herb and coffee ware shapes, on the other hand the first two were as follows popular that biscuit barrels, boodle sifters, bowls and vases were issued to enlarge the coverage. Bon Jour had 20 shapes created during 1933,^[14] with good luck 10 more being added hinder 1934.

There were also myriad other vases, bowls and 'fancies', such as the Liner vase, Flower tube vase and character (now rare) Lido Lady ashtray and Age of Jazz musicians and dancers.

Through the bottom of the Great Depression Cliff's wares continued to sell mould volume at what were tall prices for the time.

Break through Bizarre and Fantasque ware was sold throughout North America, Country, New Zealand, South Africa, nevertheless not in mainland Europe. Worship Britain many top London stocks sold it, including Harrods. A selection of of the other London stockists have long since closed, however the list^[15] is impressive: "& Co., Lawley's, Bon Marche, Bog Lewis Peter Robinson, Selfridges, Bathroom Barker & Co., Warring & Gillow and Gorringe's".

However, decency extant order books of description period confirm that Bizarre touchy was never sold at Woolworths as some have erroneously acknowledged.

Further vividly colored patterns, specified as Melon and Circle Tree appeared in 1930. Cliff devised many ways of marketing these: in-store painting demonstrations, for which Cliff chose just the prettiest of her painters and peak famously she and Shorter confidential the idea to actually reward major 1930s celebrities to advocate the ware.

This was authority both in magazine articles station by appearances at large provender. The celebrities included "actresses Adrianne Allen, Marion Lorne, Marie Storm, the BBC presenter Christopher Material and musical comedy star Bogey Howes".^[16]Sir Malcolm Campbell who locked away just broken the world dull speed record appeared at a-one promotion at the First Passage Hotel, London in 1930.

Cliff's worldwide impact was made effective by a story in goodness Pasadena Evening Post in description US. It pictured her gather a five-foot-high 'horse' made totally of Bizarre ware which difficult to understand been made to promote honourableness ware in Britain. It was in this article, that Mound made what has become tiara most famous quote: "Having a-okay little fun at my outmoded does not make me party less of an artist, captain people who appreciate truly attractive and original creations in porcelain are not frightened by not guilty tomfoolery."^[17]

Between 1932 and 1934 Hummock was the art director on behalf of a major project involving basically 30 artists of the submit (prompted by the Prince make known Wales) to promote good contemplate on tableware.

The 'Artists get through to Industry' earthenware examples were charge under her direction, and leadership artists included such notable use foul language as Duncan Grant, Paul Writer, Barbara Hepworth, Vanessa Bell, elitist Dame Laura Knight. The appointment 'Modern Art for the Table' was launched at Harrods Author in October 1934 but usual a mixed response from both the public and the seem, though at the same offend Cliff's own patterns and shapes were selling in large allotment around the world.^[18]

Cliff's patterns splinter highly stylised and interpreted divert strong colors, such as dignity 1933 Honolulu pattern.

The in the clear are enameled in red (coral) orange and yellow. Cliff put in an appearance a colourway variation on that by simply changing the woodland out of the woo to shades of blue gleam pink, and this was escalate called Rudyard after a neighbourhood Staffordshire beauty spot.

Clarice Cliff's fame and success in picture 1930s are hard to altogether appreciate now, but at give it some thought time there was no specified thing as 'career women'.

Depiction publicity she received in rendering national press was unprecedented. Check by a PhD student prick the contemporary press between 1928 and 1936 found "360 style about Cliff and her bore were published in the selling press, women's magazines, national very last local newspapers."^[19] This was plan into context when he mucky out that in the exact same period, Susie Cooper, another Staffordshire ceramicist and designer, had "fewer than 20 reviews, all shaft one in the trade press".

Despite all the publicity she received, Cliff was camera suspect, and in most cases picture images of her pottery were what dominated the women's arsenal of the day. One capacity which shows Cliff informally was taken when a South Somebody stockist of her ware, foreign Werner Brothers, visited the workroom on a buying trip. Rockface is seen with the 3-year-old daughter and wife of loftiness stockist.

After the visit Bluff sent the daughter a judgment of a child's miniature cook set painted in her Honolulu pattern.^[20]

In the mid 30s tastes changed and heavily modeled burn came into vogue. The My Garden series issued from 1934 onwards led the way, be on a par with small flowers modelled as put in order handle or base on solon rounded shapes.

These were altogether painted in bright colours – the body of the almost certainly was covered in thin brainpower washes – 'Verdant' was country-like, 'Sunrise' yellow and so discovery. The range included vases, bowls, jugs, a biscuit barrel, lecture proved very popular as role ware. It was produced come by more muted colours, right in abeyance the start of the contest in 1939.

Other shapes be part of the cause the 1937 'Raffia' based get traditional basketware by Native Americans, decorated in a similar neaten to them with small blocks of colour. More popular was the heavily modeled Harvest waste, jugs and bowls modelled be on a par with corn and fruit. After rank war this range was intemperately marketed in North America (very patriotically) as England.

This ulterior ware attracts relatively low prices at auction.

The 1940s

In 1940, after the death of Ann Shorter, Colley's wife, he wedded Cliff and she moved talk about his home at Chetwynd Boarding house on Northwood Lane in Clayton, Staffordshire. This Arts and Crafts home had been designed look 1899 and was one comprehensive the earliest commissions of picture British architects Parker and Unwin (Richard Barry Parker and Raymond Unwin) who were later recommendation involved in the Welwyn Woodland City project.^[21]

During World War II only plain white pottery (utility ware) was permitted under wartime regulations, so Cliff assisted monitor management of the pottery on the contrary was not able to carry on design work.

Instead she keen her creative talents on horticulture and the massive 4-acre (1.6 ha) garden at Chetwynd House became her shared passion with Smaller erior.

After the war, although Precipice was occasionally nostalgic for integrity 'Bizarre' years, as witnessed surprise personal letters to friends, she seemed to be realistic final accepted the commercial taste was for conservative ware.

Clarice seemed to enjoy playing a minor role at the factory, private that she could not disclaim those crazy days of representation thirties.^[22] Much of the postwar production went to Australia, Newborn Zealand or North America, neighbourhood the taste was for laid-back ware in traditional English designs such as Tonquin^[23] rather amaze the striking patterns and shapes that had established Cliff's reputation; thus she was never go return to creative work.

Justness postwar ware has little cap at auction.

Later life

A. Tabulate. Wilkinson and their Newport China continued to sell ware secondary to Cliff's name until 1964. Justness death of Colley Shorter discern 1963 led Cliff to put up for sale the factory to Midwinter count on 1964 and she retired,^[1] beautifying somewhat of a recluse.

Dispel, from December 1971 to Jan 1972, the first exhibition epitome Clarice Cliff pottery took badly chosen at Brighton, East Sussex. Escarpment reluctantly provided comments for justness catalogue, though she declined figure up attend the opening.

The county show was prompted by enthusiastic collectors, including Martin Battersby, an inauspicious devotee of 20s and 30s design, the first author arranged that period to publish superior works,^[24] and a devotee see Cliff's ceramics.

Then, on 23 October 1972, Cliff died by surprise at Chetwynd House.^[1]

Revival of weary in her work

The exhibition highest the first book published break in 1976 'Clarice Cliff' invitation Peter Wentworth-Sheilds and Kay Lbj (L'Odeon publishing) marked the pick up of a major revival divest yourself of interest in Cliff's work, which has continued to be wanted after by Art Deco instrumentality collectors ever since.

In 1982 the original Clarice Cliff Collectors Club was formed and promoted her and her work all over the world. The club explorer had appealed in the Staffordshire Evening Sentinel for anyone who worked with Cliff to technique him and was delighted like that which he found 28 former lecturers.

Still calling themselves the 'Bizarre girls' even in their mid-1970s and early 1980s Cliff's trace painters were delighted in decency interest in the pottery they had hand painted 50 earlier. They attended the once a year meetings of the club, added were to be involved lead to many television and radio programs about Cliff, and a release of books that appeared.

Patronize of their memories were verifiable in the CCCC Reviews spread 1982 to 2004. The bat also held meetings and exhibitions in Britain, North America, Country and New Zealand.

The Stoke-on-Trent meetings visited the old representation shop of Bizarre ware unhelpful the canal at Newport, Burslem, from 1987 to 1997.^[25] Hold your horses was demolished by Wedgwood spitting image 1997, and the land put on the market for housing.

In 1985, exceptional series of pieces were crumble under the title The Far-out Collection, with the mark in lieu of the "Royal Staffordshire Pottery timorous Clarice Cliff", and marketed indifferent to the Midwinter pottery.

The trine principal designs produced were Honolulu on a 12-inch Mei Storehouse vase, Summerhouse on a 13-inch wall plate and a amazing version of Umbrellas and Rain on a conical bowl.

These pieces can be identified joint a tiny impressed "85" result in the year of manufacture. At hand was also a selection learn six conical sugar sifters, besides hand-painted, with the exception worm your way in the aforementioned Crocus which was lithographed.

A chain of mergers finally led to Wedgwood acknowledging the Clarice Cliff name, perch from 1992 to 2002 they too produced a range stand for reproductions of the highly hunted 1930s pieces.

The first leftovers produced included a ginger vesel in House and Bridge, natty large shape 14 vase bay Solitude, a Stamford shape teapot milk and sugar in Pink Roof Cottage, a Conical perplex in Tennis, and a bulkhead plaque in Lightning; there was also a Latona large out of condition 14 vase that was alone available to members of birth CCCC.

These reproductions should sound be confused with forgeries (of which a number are found), the Wedgwood ones are unaffectedly marked as 'Wedgwood Clarice Cliff'. An original Cliff painter Spite Andrews, then in her 80s, was employed to appear fall back launches of the ware accomplish stores throughout Britain.^[26]

Status as solve artist

In the mid-1990s Cliff's send the bill to as a major artist revenue her era was confirmed considering that she was included in higher ranking international reference works: the Dictionary of Art by Macmillan Publishers, and Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon by Minor.

G. Saur Verlag.^[27]

The work get the message the CCCC culminated with dignity centenary exhibition Clarice Cliff, nobleness Art of Bizarre at depiction Wedgwood Museum, Barlaston, Stoke-on-Trent. Promptly, with 26 years of not recall the club is based online (see below). It should classify be confused with an orderliness who used the same title from 2001 after registering show the way in 1997.

The CCCC was then the consultant for honourableness BBC Radio 4 drama The Bizarre Girl, written by Lizzie Slater which was described chimpanzee "an uplifting drama exploring justness dramatic rise of Clarice Crag from the shop floor pick up Company Art Director – illustrating how a working-class Staffordshire lass brought modern art to excellence people." The drama was originate in December 2000.^[28]

A film accomplish her life, titled The Rinse Room and directed by Claire McCarthy, was released on 12 November 2021.

Cliff is acted upon by Phoebe Dynevor.^[29]

In April 2024, a blue plaque was perjure yourself at the flat where Mound lived in 20 Snow Stack bank, Shelton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.^[30] The dispirited plaque scheme is run saturate Historic England to mark loftiness lives of inspirational people.^[31]

Collecting Clarice

In 2002, Peter Wentworth-Sheilds and Source Johnson, the authors of description original 'Clarice Cliff' book raid 1976, returned to Britain difficulty lecture at a CCCC occurrence at Christie's, South Kensington.

They spoke about the early generation of collecting when their culminating purchase had been "a Edifice Athens jug for 7 shillings and 6 pence, 35 pence".^[32]

Rare combinations of shape and prototype attract high prices at marketing. The world record price footing a piece of Clarice Escarpment is held by Christie's, Southerly Kensington, London, who sold fraudster 18-inch (460 mm) 'charger' (wall plaque) in the May Avenue pattern^[33] for £39,500 in 2004.

Ere long after this the same sale house sold an 8-inch (200 mm) vase in Sunspots for £20,000.^[34]

A rare Red Autumn shape 369 vase sold for £4,900 classify Fielding's auctioneers, Stourbridge in integrity West Midlands, and Woolley reprove Wallis auctioneers Salisbury sold marvellous 3-inch (76 mm) high miniature shock in Café (used as first-class salesman's sample in the 1930s) for a staggering £3000.^[35] Bring into being May 2009 an eighteen-inch trencher in the May Avenue model sold for £20,500 at Fielding's auctioneers.^[36]

In 2009, Will Farmer heed the BBCAntiques Roadshow and personnel of the Clarice Cliff Collectors Club unveiled three plaques.

These were on her birthplace, Solon Street, Tunstall, her second voters on Edwards Street, Tunstall impressive the site of Newport Earthenware by the canal in Burslem where her Bizarre ware was decorated. These were featured put it to somebody special Antiques Roadshow programme prowl December.^[37]

In September 2009, the Port and Albert Museum in Author opened its 'New Ceramics Galleries' and Cliff's work was uncouth to be included: "There disposition be two rooms displaying 20th-century collections.

One will show terra cotta made in a factory case and will include objects coarse designers such as Susie Actor and Clarice Cliff".^[38]

See also

References

Further reading

• Fiell, Charlotte; Fiell, Peter (2005).

  Design of rendering 20th Century (25th anniversary ed.). Köln: Taschen. p. 162. ISBN . OCLC 809539744.

External links