A rare Clarice Cliff Marigold bowl with good, intense and bold paintwork. On the underside is handwritten "Marigold" and it is stamped "Hand Painted Bizarre by Clarice Cliff Wilkinson England". It's got a few little issues (see condition report below), yet this is totally reflected in its price - and is an opportunity to own a piece of Marigold for a song. 

History

Clarice Cliff (1899 – 1972) is one of the most renowned and accomplished ceramic designers of the twentieth century, and her ground-breaking Bizarre ware created from late 1927 through to the mid-to-late 1930s has - quite understandably - achieved worldwide recognition. Born in Tunstall, Stoke On Trent, UK, the heart of The Potteries, the ambitious Clarice Cliff worked her way up from modelling, gilding, outlining and enamelling in various ceramic producing factories until she became art director at A J Wilkinson, aged 30; unheard of, and a first, for a women - not a man - to be in such a senior position and in a highly prestigious firm.

Clarice was then given her own studio at the adjoining Newport Pottery, where she experimented with on-glaze enamel colours on factory seconds that had imperfections. Her Original Bizarre patterns were based around triangles, big and bold, which hid any defects to the bodies of the ceramics, and, more importantly, because they trail-blazed the new modern jazz-age look, which other UK potteries had failed to embrace, they proved to be an instant success. Clarice then developed her own ground-breaking modern shapes (that we now call Art Deco) to tie in with a vast range of her newly designed patterns, from stylised landscapes and florals to bold cubist, geometric and abstract designs that she developed from 1928 – and to stunning effect. It is no wonder that her work is so fervently sought after, and has been since the 1970s. It’s full of such joy, such style and such fun - and nothing then or since can compete with its unparalleled uniqueness.

Marigold

The Marigold pattern was created in 1931 by combining the intense under-glaze blue and purple colours of one existing range, known as Inspiration, with on-glaze yellows, oranges and greens - and this required two firings. Its bright and cheerful orange and yellow flowers were etched in where the Inspiration glazes had been deliberately left out in the first firing. Marigold is a rare and much sort-after pattern, and collectors have to dig deep in their pockets for this one, yet we feel our gorgeous bowl is an affordable way in. 

Material: glazed earthenware

Manufacturer: Wilkinson Ltd, UK

Designer: Clarice Cliff 

Year of manufacture: c.1930

Dimensions: Diameter 17.5cm  Height 7.5cm

Condition: No restoration, no cracks, no hairlines, however there is some wear and some very tiny nibbles on the rim, and, as is often the case with Clarice bowls, the inside of the bowl has some staining and wear to the inner blue rim - see images.