Kettle
ca. 1885 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
Dresser's copper tea kettle combines traditional European features drawn from sturdy brass cooking pots of the 16th and 17th centuries with elements typically associated with his personal style at its most inventive. Characteristic elements include the use of simple bold forms such as the three straight, spike legs and the straight handle, attached to the body by bridging struts rather than being shaped and attached directly to the body (a feature directed adapted from Japanese precedents).
Materials & Making
Dresser was inspired by the Japanese tradition of juxtaposing different metals and 'mokume' (a mixed metal sandwich forged to give the appearance of wood grain) but as the British hallmarking laws prohibited the mixing of gold and silver with base metals, experiments in combining metals were reserved for copper, brass and iron.
Design & Designing
Dresser's most innovative designs were for objects to be made in metal. Unlike his designs for ceramics and glass which often resemble plant forms in their shape, ornamentation or colouring, his metalwork designs tend to be fully abstracted from their organic source, frequently employing symmetrical, rectilinear shapes and undecorated surfaces.
Dresser's copper tea kettle combines traditional European features drawn from sturdy brass cooking pots of the 16th and 17th centuries with elements typically associated with his personal style at its most inventive. Characteristic elements include the use of simple bold forms such as the three straight, spike legs and the straight handle, attached to the body by bridging struts rather than being shaped and attached directly to the body (a feature directed adapted from Japanese precedents).
Materials & Making
Dresser was inspired by the Japanese tradition of juxtaposing different metals and 'mokume' (a mixed metal sandwich forged to give the appearance of wood grain) but as the British hallmarking laws prohibited the mixing of gold and silver with base metals, experiments in combining metals were reserved for copper, brass and iron.
Design & Designing
Dresser's most innovative designs were for objects to be made in metal. Unlike his designs for ceramics and glass which often resemble plant forms in their shape, ornamentation or colouring, his metalwork designs tend to be fully abstracted from their organic source, frequently employing symmetrical, rectilinear shapes and undecorated surfaces.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
|
| Materials and techniques | Spun copper and cast brass, with ebony handle |
| Brief description | Kettle, copper, brass, composition handle and a wooden knop, London ca. 1885, maker's mark of Benham and Froud, designed by Dr. Chrstopher Dresser. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | Trade mark of Benham & Froud
|
| Gallery label | British Galleries:
Dresser was inspired by the Japanese tradition of combining different metals. The British Assay Office prohibited mixing gold and silver with base metals, and so his experiments were reserved for combinations of copper and brass. The use of these cheaper materials suited Dresser's ambition to make 'art' objects available to a wider buying public.(27/03/2003) |
| Object history | Designed by Christopher Dresser (born in Glasgow, 1834, died in Mulhouse, France, 1904); made by Benham and Froud, London |
| Summary | Object Type Dresser's copper tea kettle combines traditional European features drawn from sturdy brass cooking pots of the 16th and 17th centuries with elements typically associated with his personal style at its most inventive. Characteristic elements include the use of simple bold forms such as the three straight, spike legs and the straight handle, attached to the body by bridging struts rather than being shaped and attached directly to the body (a feature directed adapted from Japanese precedents). Materials & Making Dresser was inspired by the Japanese tradition of juxtaposing different metals and 'mokume' (a mixed metal sandwich forged to give the appearance of wood grain) but as the British hallmarking laws prohibited the mixing of gold and silver with base metals, experiments in combining metals were reserved for copper, brass and iron. Design & Designing Dresser's most innovative designs were for objects to be made in metal. Unlike his designs for ceramics and glass which often resemble plant forms in their shape, ornamentation or colouring, his metalwork designs tend to be fully abstracted from their organic source, frequently employing symmetrical, rectilinear shapes and undecorated surfaces. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | M.30&A-1971 |
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| Record created | March 27, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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