Stoneware Plate with 'River and Basket' Decoration
MakerMade by
Michael Cardew
(Wimbledon, London, England, 1901 - 1983)
MakerMade at
Pottery Training Centre
(Abuja, Nigeria, founded 1951)
StudentTaught by
Bernard Leach
(Hong Kong, 1887 - 1979)
CollectorCollected by
Sandy Dunbar
(London, England, 1929 - 2012)
Date1951-1965
Object NamePlate
Mediumstoneware
ClassificationsCeramics
DimensionsOverall (Height x Diameter): 35 × 272mm
AcquisitionThe Sandy Dunbar Studio Ceramics Collection presented in 2023 by Crinan Dunbar and Rebecca Russell.
Copyright© the copyright holder
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDMS095708.20
About MeThis stoneware plate with black and red glaze is decorated with a slip combed 'river pattern' and 'basket pattern' revealing the green glaze beneath. Combing is a technique that potters use to make parallel lines on the surface of a pot, often in a waved pattern like the one Cardew has created on this plate. The potter may choose to make the pattern by dragging a tool through the clay itself or by wiping wet slip (liquid clay) with a tool or fingers to reveal the surface below.
The plate was made by Michael Cardew at the Teaching Centre for the North of Africa at Abuja in Nigeria, which Cardew established in 1951, whilst he held the post of Pottery Officer. Here he used materials from the surrounding area and concentrated on making stoneware, making some of his finest pieces. Cardew left Abuja in 1965 and returned to his pottery at Wenford Bridge in Cornwall.
