Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 143, The Timothy Sainsbury Gallery

Martin Ware

Bottle
1900 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

If Martin-ware [… has] not the transparency of porcelain nor the elaborately and costly ornamentation of Sèvres [it is] pure and honest art work.

This is how the art critic Cosmo Monkhouse described the output of the Martin Brothers' studio in The Magazine of Art in 1882. Eccentric founder Robert Wallace Martin and his siblings Charles, Walter and Edwin epitomized the energy and experimentation of the nineteenth-century art pottery movement. They regarded pottery as a means of artistic expression, rather than a product of industrial manufacture, and were particularly inspired by the naturalistic and rustic flora and fauna forms of the sixteenth-century potter Bernard Palissy and Japanese art - the use of blank space in this underwater design shows the influence of Japanese print-makers.

This flask is typical of the Martin Brothers' grotesque and eccentric stonewares and demonstrates a unique blend of fantasy and imagination.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleMartin Ware (manufacturer's title)
Materials and techniques
Salt-glazed stoneware with incised and painted decoration, cork and metal. The exterior was painted in a white slip, which was then incised. The incised decoration was then partly filled in and over-painted in brown before firing and salt-glazing.
Brief description
'Martin Ware' bottle, salt-glazed stoneware with incised and painted decoration, made by Martin Bros., London, 1900
Physical description
Flask with cork stopper in metal mount. Salt-glazed stoneware with incised and painted decoration of fantastic fish.
Dimensions
  • Including stopper length: 25.4cm
  • Maximum width: 16.5cm
converted from registers
Marks and inscriptions
'Martin Bros London & Southall 9-1900' (incised)
Gallery label
Bottle 'Martin Ware' made by the Martin Bros., London, England, 1900 Mark: 'Martin Bros London & Southall 9-1900', incised Salt-glazed stoneware with incised and painted decoration C.33-1974 Given by Miss N.V. Wade(23/05/2008)
Credit line
Given by Miss N. V. Wade
Object history
Given by Miss N.V.Wade
Subject depicted
Summary
If Martin-ware [… has] not the transparency of porcelain nor the elaborately and costly ornamentation of Sèvres [it is] pure and honest art work.

This is how the art critic Cosmo Monkhouse described the output of the Martin Brothers' studio in The Magazine of Art in 1882. Eccentric founder Robert Wallace Martin and his siblings Charles, Walter and Edwin epitomized the energy and experimentation of the nineteenth-century art pottery movement. They regarded pottery as a means of artistic expression, rather than a product of industrial manufacture, and were particularly inspired by the naturalistic and rustic flora and fauna forms of the sixteenth-century potter Bernard Palissy and Japanese art - the use of blank space in this underwater design shows the influence of Japanese print-makers.

This flask is typical of the Martin Brothers' grotesque and eccentric stonewares and demonstrates a unique blend of fantasy and imagination.
Collection
Accession number
C.33-1974

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Record createdMarch 31, 2008
Record URL
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