From teenage factory girl to one of the most recognised ceramic designers of the 20th century, the success story of Clarice Cliff (1899 to 1972) is rooted in the heart of the Potteries in Stoke-on-Trent and a Blue Plaque has been erected by Historic England under the category of design at 20 Snow Hill, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST1 4LT to honour her work.
image for illustration: Ravel Conical Coffee ware image by Leonard Griffin – Edited from Public Domain work on Wikipedia, Public Domain
Historic England writes:
From teenage factory girl to one of the most recognised ceramic designers of the 20th century, the success story of Clarice Cliff (1899 to 1972) is rooted in the heart of the Potteries in Stoke-on-Trent.
Her vibrant, colourful plates, jugs, teapots and figures – with their dynamic patterns and fusion of art and practicality – transformed homeware in the interwar years, bringing modernity to the kitchen table.
Cliff’s ‘revolutionary’ designs have also come to epitomise the spirit of Art Deco. Her work is displayed in museums and galleries worldwide, commands legions of fans, and is much sought after by collectors.
Clarice has been honoured with a blue plaque at 20 Snow Hill. It reflects her life as both a successful designer and art director, and the joy her creativity has brought so many people for decades.
Early career
Born into a working-class family in 1899 in Tunstall, Clarice left school at 13 and started working for a local pottery firm, like many girls her age.
However, unlike most of her contemporaries, Clarice moved to different jobs and pottery firms, developing a wide range of artistic and design skills. By 1918, she moved to A. J. Wilkinson’s Royal Staffordshire Pottery in Middleport, Burslem, where she stayed for the rest of her career.
She started experimenting with colour and pattern and produced her ‘Bizarre’ range, featuring hand-painted colours and shapes of startling boldness and originality. These were first shown to the trade in 1927, quickly becoming bestsellers, and by the summer of 1928, they were being marketed under Clarice Cliff’s own name.
Bringing design to the dinner table
Clarice Cliff launched ‘Bizarre’ when she was still in her 20s. Bored by the drab and ugly china she saw in the shops, Clarice decided to use bright colours and created experimental patterns. With its bright colours and abstract, hand-painted geometric forms, ‘Bizarre’ was an immediate commercial success.
Part of the success of Cliff’s wares was that they were modern yet practical, elegant yet inexpensive. They also caught perfectly the mood of the times, with the move towards individuality.
“Women today want continual change, they will have colour and plenty of it. Colour seems to radiate happiness and the spirit of modern life and movement, and I cannot put too much of it into my designs to please women.”
Clarice Cliff, Pottery Designer and Factory Art Director (1930)From ‘Clarice Cliff: The Art of Bizarre’, 1999
