Objects from the Arts and Crafts movement are always highly sought after by dealers and private buyers alike. Dating from the end of the nineteenth century and into the early twentieth century, the decorative arts movement was a reaction against what was seen as a decline in design and workmanship following the Industrial Revolution, where a greater importance was placed on mass production and keeping costs down.
Groups of artists and Guilds began to form, and one such group was located in Newlyn, Penzance. This fishing community, who relied heavily on the weather for their income, turned to earlier traditions in handcrafts to supplement their income.
John Pearson, a skilled metalworker who worked for William de Morgan as a designer and decorator of his famous tiles, was invited by John Drew MacKenzie to join him in Newlyn to teach the fisherman new skills following his resignation from the Guild of Handicrafts. The forthcoming July sale at the Bourne saleroom includes one of Pearson’s works: a copper jardinière, repousse decorated with flowers and leaves, signed to underside J Pearson and dated 1896.
Typical motifs in Pearsons work, like many of the artists working within this movement, are taken from the natural world: birds, fish, flora and fauna, animals and grotesque creatures from the imagination. Copper trays, fire screens, trinket and coal boxes along with chargers and jardinières are synonymous with Pearson and his time in Newlyn, and come onto the market sporadically.
If you are a collector of items from the Arts ad Crafts movement, or would like to purchase a piece of social history, the Bourne saleroom has the lot for you!
