Large Stoneware Baluster Vase with Inlaid Cobalt Decoration
MakerMade by
William Plumptre
(born 1959)
StudentTaught by
Tatsuzo Shimaoka
(Tokyo, Japan, 1919 - 2007)
CollectorCollected by
Sandy Dunbar
(London, England, 1929 - 2012)
Datelate 20th Century
Object NameVase
Mediumstoneware, cobalt slip, wood ash and nuka glazes
ClassificationsCeramics
DimensionsOverall (Height x Width): 373 x 322 mm,
Base (Diameter): 177 mm
Rim (Diameter): 168 mm
Base (Diameter): 177 mm
Rim (Diameter): 168 mm
AcquisitionThe Sandy Dunbar Studio Ceramics Collection presented in 2023 by Crinan Dunbar and Rebecca Russell.
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDMS095708.359
About MeThis large stoneware baluster vase, or bottle, has been wheel-thrown in two sections which were subsequently joined together.
It is glazed all over in a pale green, brown-speckled, wood ash glaze with cobalt slip inlaid decoration over the outside, creating a random striped pattern. A white nuka glaze has been applied in a random manner over both the exterior and interior, pooling around the base and neck.
William Plumptre makes decorative stoneware platters, bowls and bottles, often made to a large scale as in this example. His work is inspired by the landscape and Japanese pottery and he specialises in the decorative technique of inlaying coloured slips (liquid clay) into a pattern of impressions made on the surface of the semi dry pot . His glazes are made of local materials, such as wood ash, found near his pottery in Witherslack, Cumbria.
