Nantgarw Newsletter - Spring 2018

Nantgarw Newsletter Spring 2018May Antiques Fair Nantgarw Porcelain is backOur Spring antiques fair will A team working at Nantgarw China Works has successfullytake place this year on May managed to recreate the recipe for Nantgarw porcelain, last7th Bank Holiday Monday. We made two hundred years ago and regarded by many as thewill have the usual selection of finest porcelain ever madehigh quality Welsh porcelaintogether with antique Through a combination of methodical historic research,jewellery, prints and other forensic analysis of shards and experimentation, the team hascollectibles. managed to recreate the original recipe and successfully fire new work from Nantgarw Porcelain.Recent visit from EricKnowles The project has taken place over the last six months and been funded through a Research and Development Grant from theWe were delighted to receive Arts Council of Wales as well as through an innovativea recent visit from ceramics Crowdfunding campaign run on the Art Fund’s Art Happensexpert Eric Knowles who came platform. The first items made from the porcelain are beingto present a feature on the made as one of the rewards for donors to the crowdfunding.Nantgarw China Works for aforthcoming episode of A small exhibition is currently running at the museum whichBargain Hunt. explains how the project was achieved and displays examplesEric was delighted to meet of the new work.such a passionate group ofvolunteers and explained that Nantgarw China Works will be commissioning one of the UK’she had wanted to visit for leading ceramic painters to decorate a few of the new cabinetmany years. cups which will become part of the museums permanentHe even had a go at slip collection.In the future we will be focussing on creating newcasting some porcelain. work contemporary work from the porcelain. nantgarwchinaworksmuseum.co.uk 1

Nantgarw Newsletter Spring 2018The London Dealers and DecoratorsArticle by Oliver Fairclough - Retired Keeper of Art, NationalMuseum of WalesWhy was Nantgarw porcelain decorated in London?William Billingsley’s ‘business plan’ when he arrived at Nantgarw in1813 was to make porcelain that was as good as any Europeanproduct, and superior, at least in whiteness and translucency, tothe wares of contemporary British factories. As he lacked thecapital to employ his own painters and gilders, or the time to paintmuch himself, he would sell his wares ‘in the white’ to bedecorated by others.  When by 1818 he managed to fire and glaze a marketable quantity of porcelain (mostly plates), he stuck to that plan. Regency London was one of the Fig.1.  Nantgarw plate from a service richest cities in the world, and its retail made for the Prince Regent’s brother, businesses included a couple of the Duke of Cambridge, probably decorated by Robbins and Randall. hundred vendors of ceramics, and several china-decorating studios. Billingsley is said to have sold much of his Nantgarw to John Mortlock, who had these wares decorated by the Clerkenwell firm of Robbins and Randall. It is difficult to be sure what the firm painted for Mortlock, but a dessert service sold to the Duke of Cambridge is probably its work (Fig.1).  The Swansea china works also sold a smaller proportion of its wares in the white. Several dealers and decorators worked with both factories, John Powell (Fig. 2), and J Bradley & Co who (unusually) marked their wares. Some highly ornate ‘London’ Nantgarw was painted by James Turner and W. Plant (Fig.3), who worked for the decorating business of a Mr Sims.  Fig.2. Nantgarw plate, painted by Other decorators were set toJohn Powell, Wimpole Street, copy pieces of eighteenth-with a hunting scene after century porcelain from SèvresWouwermans. © National (Fig.4). Billingsley was correctMuseum of Wales that there would be a demand for his porcelain in London. However he could not fire Fig 4. Nantgarw plate, decorated with a enough successfully to cover his ribbon-pattern also used on a group of Sèvres costs, and in 1820 he abandoned services made for British buyers in 1769-72. © Nantgarw. Young and Pardoe National Museum of Wales. decided to decorate the remaining stock for local sale, ending the London connection.Fig.3 Nantgarw plate, painted by nantgarwchinaworksmuseum.co.uk 2W Plant © National Museum ofWales

Nantgarw Newsletter Spring 2018Additional information on London Decorator marksStuart Brown, The Welsh ConnectionFurther to the previous article, pictured below are two items of Swansea porcelain which show theapplied marks used by the London decorators. These marked items are highly prized by collectors.The decoration on the Swansea plate by J Bradley & Co. is also found on a Nantgarw Service and wastaken from George Edwards's Natural History of Uncommon Birds. The work of the Bradley brothers isdiscussed by Oliver Fairclough in The London China Trade 1800-30 Vol.16.Cabaret cup supplied by Pellatt & Green, London Swansea plate by J.Bradley & Co, Pall Mall,LondonInteresting Marks on Nantgarw PorcelainStuart Brown, The Welsh Connection Three rare pieces of Nantgarw porcelain have appeared recently. The first is a Nantgarw taper stick.  Its handle was formed from one of the handles usually used on the griffon handled cabinet cups which were produced at the factory.  It has no iridescence indicating local decoration which is of sprigs of roses. Unusually, it has inscribed into its base the word Nantgarw. I know of no other item of Nantgarw Porcelain with this script mark. Unfortunately, I am unable to photograph the mark which is under the glaze. The second item is a griffon handled cabinet cup and saucer. The cup and saucer show decoration which is found on other locally decorated examples of Nantgarw and is attributed to William Billingsley. The porcelain has the Nantgarw translucency which makes our porcelain such a desired item. What is unusual about this cup and saucer is that they bear the script mark Nantgarw. nantgarwchinaworksmuseum.co.uk 3

Nantgarw Newsletter Spring 2018Pottery Workshops In the Spring 2017 newsletter we referred to the expertise of the late Harold Davies, probably the most knowledgeable of allWe are now running seven collectors of Welsh porcelain. He described the three things toseparate workshops each week. All look for in identifying Nantgarw porcelain - the shape, theof these workshops are fully porcelain body and the decoration.subscribed with a waiting list.   This small cabinet cup and saucer illustrate all three attributes. However, what is unusual is that the cup and saucer bear the script mark Nantgarw in red, something we are told to be wary of.  I believe that this cup and saucer is correct and from the Nantgarw first period 1813-14 with local decoration probably by William Billingsley.Reflections on the the new Nantgarw PorcelainSally Stubbings, Ceramicist in Residence I am delighted to say that we have achieved what we set out to achieve and re-created the two-hundred-year old recipe which William Billingsley developed at Nantgarw. When Charles Fountain (project manager) came up with this idea I was immediately very excited to be part of such an ambitious project, I could not think of a better way to honour what Billingsley had achieved here. The first piece that came out of the kiln was a veryCharles Fountain and Sally Stubbings checking the emotional, the body is such a beautiful colour, very fine,translucency of the new porcelain. very white and extremely translucent. The issues we have faced have been the ‘shortness’ of the material, it behaves very differently to modern ‘off the shelf’ bonechina or porcelain, we are working to resolve this. We were determined to be true to our goal and matchthe recipe exactly. The purity of our body is the reward for all the hard work that has taken place. Wehave our very own White Gold from Wales.It has not been easy, and I would like to say a big thank you to all who have supported us in ourendeavour. While we have achieved a stable casting body our research and development is very muchongoing. We hope to adapt and extend the use of the porcelain to also become a throwing and handbuilding material. I am enjoying the challenge of this and feel we are making history for The China Worksand raising the profile of Nantgarw to its rightful position.I now look forward to being part of a contemporary exhibition with a number or Ceramic Artists. This isplanned for the next year or so and will be a touring exhibition beginning its journey at Nantgarw. nantgarwchinaworksmuseum.co.uk 4