Terracotta pumpkin pot with fruit, early 20th century
The pumpkin pot with fruit, attributed to the Compton Pottery--this rare and unique piece has all the attributes of the Compton Pottery. It was made on commission for an ‘Arts & Crafts’ house in Farnham. Many Compton pieces are unsigned, but there are potters initials HR
Dimensions: 55 cm wide, 53 cm deep, 33 cm high
Condition: perfect condition, gorgeous patina
Reference: AZU102014
Literature:
The Compton Potters’ Arts Guild was established in 1895 by Mary Seaton Fraser Tyler Watts, wife of the famous portrait painter and sculpture George Watts.The couple had moved from London to the village of Compton in Surrey in the 1890s and Mary, finding clay deposits in the grounds of the house, started the pottery to give the poor of Compton employment. William de Morgan helped with the installation of the wood- fired kiln. Originally organized to produce decoration for a chapel, the pottery continued production of architectural items and garden ornament after completion of the chapel in 1896. Liberty & Company as well as other leading designers of the times, including Archibald Knox, engaged the firm to produce their designs. - Compton Pottery by Hilary Calvert, published by Watts Gallery, Compton, 2006- Archibald Knox and Mary Seton Watts, ‘Modern Celtic Art’ garden pottery by Veronica Franklin Gould, published by Arrow Press, Farnham, 2005