Artists
The Wedgwood Company was founded by Josiah Wedgwood I on May Day 1759 at the Ivy House Works, Burslem. Once Wedgwood had established himself as a potter of renown, he commenced in earnest to use the services of eminent artists of his day - particularly for the origination of the exquisite bas relief designs which were to appear on the traditional ceramic bodies he had evolved, such as Black Basalt and Jasper.
Some of the most notable artists associated with the Wedgwood name in the eighteenth century include the following.
John Flaxman jnr (1755-1826)
Born at York, the son of a modeller and plaster cast supplier. From an early age he showed considerable artistic skill, and in 1770 he joined the Academy Schools, and was awarded a silver medal a year later. In 1775 he began to design bas-reliefs, and to model portrait medallions, for Josiah Wedgwood I. Among the most famous of his bas-reliefs for Wedgwood can be included the 'Dancing Hours', and the renowned 'Apotheosis of Homer'. In 1787, accompanied by his wife, he journeyed to Rome where he lived for seven years. During this time he sent designs to Wedgwood, as well as supervising modellers on behalf of the factory. He returned to England in 1794, and then devoted himself chiefly to monumental sculpture. He became a member of the Royal Academy in 1800, and a member of the Academy of Rome in 1816. He also sculpted the circular monument to the first Josiah, which can be seen in the Church of St. Peter ad Vincula, Stoke.
George Stubbs ( 1724- 1806)
Considered to be the greatest British painter of horses, his 'Anatomy of the Horse' was published in 1766. He became interested in painting on various substances, and as a result he came to the attention of Josiah Wedgwood I's partner, Thomas Bentley. Wedgwood then set about the task of providing ceramic plaques for Stubbs to paint on using special enamel colours.
Wedgwood wrote to Bentley in 1779 saying - 'When you see Mr Stubs (sic) pray tell him how hard I have been labouring to furnish him with the means of adding immortality to his excellent pencil'. At the time the paintings were viewed by the public with disapproval, with most of them remaining unsold at the time of Stubbs' death. Nowadays the paintings are highly prized.
In July 1780 Stubbs visited the Wedgwood family, staying at Etruria Hall for several months. During this time he modelled two bas-reliefs for Wedgwood, 'The Frightened Horse' and 'The Fall of Phaeton'. He also produced the Wedgwood family painting in oil on (wood) panel, which featured Josiah I, his wife Sarah, and their seven surviving children in the grounds of Etruria Hall, as well as producing twin portraits of Josiah and Sarah which were painted on ceramic plaques.
Sir Joshua Reynolds PRA (1723-92)
Probably the greatest of the British portrait painters and a founder member of the Royal Academy. His portraits of Josiah Wedgwood and his wife Sarah (painted 1782/3) are in the collection of the Wedgwood Museum Trust. Wedgwood used certain of Sir Joshua's paintings as inspiration for his bas reliefs - and include the 'Infant Academy', 'Music' (modelled as a companion to the 'Infant Academy') and 'Venus chiding cupid for casting accounts'.
Lady Elizabeth Templetown (1747-1823)
Elizabeth Lady Templetown was an amateur artist and sculptor, and the majority of her designs for Wedgwood were created between l783 and l789. For the most part these tended to depict figures of women and children engaged in domestic pursuits, hence the general term 'Domestic Employment' series. These designs were supplied to Wedgwood as drawings or as 'cut-Indian paper' from which William Hackwood modelled the bas-reliefs.
In the nineteenth century the Wedgwood factory used again talents of some of the leading lights of the day - as well as continuing to use formidable 'in-house' talent, such as the notable modeller William Hackwood, - he worked for the Company for some 63 years, commencing in employment in 1769, and then continuing to work with the second generation of the family, finally retiring in 1832. His magnificent career therefore spanned two centuries.
