Bluebell Designs for Pottery made by Moorcroft, 1898-2023

A selection of bluebell designs for pottery made by Moorcroft in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, between 1898 and 2023.

This gallery includes work by William Moorcroft, Walter Moorcroft, Sally Tuffin, Rachel Bishop, Emma Bossons FRSA, Kerry Goodwin, Paul Hilditch, Vicky Lovatt, Nicola Slaney, Sian Leeper, Philip Gibson, Anita Harris, Shirley Hayes, and Elizabeth Todd. And many highly-skilled modelers, molders, casters, turners, spongers, tracers, tube-liners, painters, glazers, and firers.

My interest is how this work illustrates the varied treatments of the same subject that can be made by the same and different artists in the same media over many years' time.

Page 3: 2017 to 2023

1898 to 2008 • 2009 to 2016 • 2017 to 2023

2017

Rachel Bishop
BLUEBELL WOOD

• Trial

9 inch vase.

Moorcroft Bluebell Wood trial by Rachel Bishop

2017

Vicky Lovatt
BABY BELL

2 inch miniature vase.

Moorcroft Baby Bell vase by Vicky Lovatt

Baby Bell trial master dated 23-3-17.

Moorcroft Baby Bell trial master by Vicky Lovatt

2017

Nicola Slaney
GRASMERE BLUEBELLS

5 inch vase, numbered and signed.

Red dot for minor flaws.

The two small lakes of Grasmere and Rydal Water are in the Lake District in Northwest England.

Moorcroft Grasmere Bluebells by Nicola Slaney

2017

Kerry Goodwin
SONG OF SPRING

• Trial

8 inch vase.

Red dot for minor flaws.

Moorcroft Song of Spring trial by Kerry Goodwin

Moorcroft Song of Spring vase by Kerry Goodwin

The 2017 production vase, edition of 50 in the "I Am Not My Father" Collection.

W. Moorcroft Ltd photo.

2018

Emma Bossons
DINGLE DELL

• Trial

5 inch vase.

Moorcroft Dingle Dell trial 2018 by Emma Bossons

This trial dated 27-11-18

Moorcroft Dingle Dell trial 2019 by Emma Bossons

This trial dated 12-02-19

2018

Emma Bossons
DINGLE DELL

5 inch vase.
One of 40 numbered and signed.

Dingle Dell is a wood near the River Derwent in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

Moorcroft Dingle Dell vase by Emma Bossons

2018

Rachel Bishop
WOODLAND MIST

8 inch vase.
One of 30 numbered and signed.

Moorcroft Woodland Mist vase by Rachel Bishop

2018

Nicola Slaney
RENISHAW HALL

5 inch vase, signed and numbered.

Renishaw Hall and Gardens is a country house in the parish of Eckington in Derbyshire, the home of the Sitwell family for 400 years.

Moorcroft Renishaw Hall vase by Nicola Slaney

2019

Vicky Lovatt
A CLOUD OF BELLS

7 inch vase.
One of 15 numbered and signed.

Moorcroft Cloud of Bells vase by Vicky Lovatt

2019

Nicola Slaney
DOVE COTTAGE

8 inch plaque, numbered.

Wordsworth 250 Collection

Moorcroft Dove Cottage plaque by Nicola Slaney

2019

Kerry Goodwin
A SPRING WEDDING

6 inch vase.
One of 25 numbered.

Moorcroft A Spring Wedding vase by Kerry Goodwin

2019

BUTTERFLIES

• Trial

Standard teapot.

Tubeliner and painter initials, no designer monogram.

Moorcroft butterflies and bluebells teapot trial

I include this teapot here, although this similar 2019 trial plate design I think are Columbine flowers.

Moorcroft Butterfly and Columbine trial plate

2019

Vicky Lovatt
PURPLE BORDER

• Trial

8 inch plaque.

Moorcroft Purple Border plaque by Vicky Lovatt

2020

Rachel Bishop
ROYDON WOODS

8 inch vase.
One of 20 numbered and signed.

Roydon Woods is a nature reserve near Brockenhurst in Hampshire managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and part of New Forest Special Area of Conservation.

Moorcroft Roydon Woods vase by Rachel Bishop

Moorcroft Roydon Woods vase trial by Rachel Bishop

Roydon Woods trial.

W. Moorcroft Ltd photo.

2020

Emma Bossons
BLUEBELL SONG

2 inch miniature vase.

Moorcroft Bluebell Song vase by Emma Bossons

2020

FLORIAN BLUEBELL WOOD

• Trial

8½ inch plaque.

Tubeliner and painter initials, no designer monogram.

Moorcroft Florian Bluebell Wood plaque trial

2020

Nicola Slaney
BEEBELLS

9¾ inch jug.

Moorcroft Beesbells jug by Nicola Slaney

The design watercolour for this jug was the winner of the first Moorcroft watercolour design competition in 2020, voted by 617 Moorcroft member entries.

Moorcroft Beebells design watercolour by Nicola Slaney

2020

Kerry Goodwin
ALBINO

4 inch ginger jar.
One of 25 numbered and signed.

Moorcroft Albino ginger jar by Kerry Goodwin

2020

Rachel Bishop
MOONLIT BLUEBELLS

10 inch vase,
One of 25 numbered and signed.

Moorcroft Moonlit Bells by Rachel Bishop

One of five designs, one by each of the five women of the Moorcroft Design Studio, in the 'Memories of the Moorcroft Design Studio — 25th Anniversary Collection' 2023, with the MDS 25-year backstamp.
"Rachel proved that a moonlit night in the New Forest can be a deeply spiritual experience within clay form."

2021

Kerri Goodwin
BLUEBELL BOWER

4 inch egg.

Moorcroft Bluebell Bower egg by Kerri Goodwin

2021

Emma Bossons
WILDFLOWER MEDLEY BLUEBELLS

4 inch plaque.

Moorcroft Medley Bluebells plaque by Emma Bossons

Emma Bossons' original design watercolour.

Moorcroft bluebells original watercolour by Emma Bossons

2022

Emma Bossons
MEDLEY

• Trial

4 inch vase.

Moorcroft Medley vase trial by Emma Bossons

The production vase.

W. Moorcroft Ltd photo.

2022

Kerry Goodwin
MASEFIELD

• Trial

5½ inch vase, signed.

This design illustrates the John Masefield poem, The Bluebells:
"We stood upon the grass beside the road,
At a wood's fence, to look among the trees ..."

Moorcroft Masefield vase trial by Kerry Goodwin

Moorcroft Masefield 2 vase trial by Kerry Goodwin

The related trial vase above is Masefield 2.

W. Moorcroft Ltd photo.

2022

Emma Bossons
BEES AND BELLS

• Trial

5 inch vase.

Moorcroft Bells and Bees Trial by Emma Bossons

2022

Nicola Slaney
SYMPHONY IN COLOURS

• Trial

2 inch vase.

This trial dated 16.6.22.

Moorcroft Symphony in Colours trial by Nicola Slaney

Moorcroft 'Mini of the Month' for May 2023.
"In May the British hedgerow is a vibrant lime green, dappled with the white froth of hawthorn. There is vibrant colour to be found too, as along the base of the hedgerow bluebells are at their peak."

In August 1998 W. Moorcroft Plc. acquired Kingsley Enamels Limited, a family company distinguished in decorative metal work since 1904. The name was changed to Moorcroft Enamels, and traded from 1999 to 2006.
I have not had a particular interest in the enamel work, which have included bluebell designs, but have this example.

Elizabeth Todd
WILD SPRING FLOWERS

3½ inch vase.
250 numbered and initialed.

Moorcroft Wild Spring Flowers enamel by Elizabeth Todd

Left, a Moorcroft bluebell enamel by Jayne Bishop, and right an enamel by Phillip Gibson.
Auction photos.

Moorcroft Blue Bells enamel by Jayne Bishop

Moorcroft bluebell enamel by Phillip Gibson

British pottery artist Anita Harris was a member of the design studio for Moorcroft Cobridge Stoneware and Black Ryden from 2002, until those projects were closed in 2005.
The ten years prior she was head designer at Poole Pottery; then in 2006 she founded Anita Harris Art Pottery in Stoke-on-Trent.

Anita Harris
BLUEBELL LUSTRE

9½ inch vase,
2019 trial.

The Bluebell Lustre design was produced in different shapes and sizes, also with a yellow-ochre base colour.

Anita Harris
BLUEBELL FOREST

8 inch vase.

The Bluebell Forest design was produced in several shapes and sizes.

Jeanne McDougall produced some worthy designs for Moorcroft when the Design Studio was founded in 1997.
McDougall was designer for Old Tupton Ware, originally in the village of Old Tupton, Derbyshire, later moving to Powys, Wales, a substantial producer.

Jeanne McDougall
BLUEBELLS

9 inch vase

The Old Tupton Ware designs were produced in a variety of shapes and sizes.

The significant omission here for an actual example is the 2001 Emma Bossons bluebell vase. Auction photo.

Please let me know if you know of any others.

Moorcroft bluebell vase by Emma Bossons 2001

This outstanding ginger jar trial by Rachel Bishop was produced in 1995.
Sold at Hansons in 2020.

This gallery was created for recreational interest only.
I have very little experience with photography, taking these photos with a Samsung S-10+ phone camera using a white nylon sheet for a background. Brightness is low in favour of reduced glare and accurate colour.
Contact at paul@pauldavies.net • www.pauldavies.net • www.sybiltawse.info

TOP • 1898 to 2008 • 2009 to 2016