Wood & Sons Art Deco Pottery

Company Growth and Key Personnel

Initially operating from the Trent, New Wharf Potteries, the company expanded by acquiring additional sites, including the Crown Works in 1920 and the Ellgreave Works in 1921. Later, in 1931, they consolidated their operations at the large Stanley Pottery complex, reflecting their considerable growth (employing around a thousand people by the 1950s and 60s).

The creative direction of Wood & Sons was immensely strong due to the talent they employed:

• Frederick Rhead (1856–1933): A key figure in British pottery, Rhead became Art Director in 1912.

• Charlotte Rhead (1885–1947): Frederick's daughter and a highly influential ceramic designer in her own right, she joined the company in 1926.

• Harry Wood (d. 1956): Joining in 1889, Harry Wood was not just a director but also a noted figure whose influence extended to inspiring other designers, including both Susie Cooper and Charlotte Rhead.

Art Deco Output: Bursley Ware

Wood & Sons produced their innovative Art Deco ceramics under the successful tradename Bursley Ware. This range was a direct response to the demand for modern, colourful, and accessible design in the post-WWI era. The Bursley Ware label became synonymous with vibrant, handcrafted-looking patterns applied to commercial earthenware.

Art Deco Design and Designers:

The Bursley Ware Art Deco pieces utilized the talents of the aforementioned designers alongside others, such as Dora Tennant and, for a period, Susie Cooper, before she moved to Gray's Pottery.

• Rhead's Influence: Both Frederick and Charlotte Rhead designed patterns that exemplified the Art Deco taste for bold colour, geometric patterns, and stylized motifs.

• Frederick Rhead created patterns like Persian Rose, which, while incorporating floral elements, simplified them into strong, decorative designs using vivid enamel colours.

• Charlotte Rhead is known for her distinctive tube-lining technique (fine lines of slip applied to create raised outlines for colour fills), which, when applied to her geometric patterns (such as Tudor or Stirling), created a handcrafted Art Deco effect on vases, bowls, and plates.

• Aesthetic Characteristics: Bursley Ware pieces are characterized by:

• Vibrant Enamel Colours: Strong, eye-catching palettes suitable for the Jazz Age.

• Geometric and Stylized Motifs: Patterns often featured borders, squares, diagonals, and simplified floral or animal elements.

• Lustre Glazes: Used extensively on early Bursley Ware vases and decorative pieces, adding the metallic, iridescent sheen popular in the 1920s.

The success of Bursley Ware allowed Wood & Sons to appeal to the mass market while maintaining a reputation for stylish, high-quality, and modern decorative earthenware.