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I know this one.
I know this one. I'll hold off for a bit to see if anyone else chimes in, though.
So this ultimately wound up in your collection, Scott? Excellent!
~Scott
sllab studios
http//www.sllab.net
Mystery Twister
Dear Scott,
I would bet that this is designed to hold a wine bottle.
but the designer remains a mystery... nice glaze, almost lava-like. California?
Fran
Nice guess...
...the lava-like glaze is a clue.
wild guess
Your description implies that this pottery has a purpose other than being just decorative. I'll guess that it's a candleholder, although an unusual one. I'll say Belle Kogan for the designer.
Gotta Spill It
OK, I've got to share my guess before this thread gets too buried ...
Is it a prototype lamp base by Russel Wright for Bauer?
If so, please do share how it found its way into your collection! It's a great piece!
~Scott
sllab studios
http//www.sllab.net
You got it!
You're absolutely right, Scott!
I got it off of ebay about 5 years ago. It was described as a Russel Wright prototype Bauer lamp, but there was some disbelief from everyone in the RW internet discussion group. However, having a photographic memory for pottery, I had remembered seeing it sitting on a kitchen shelf when I went to Manitoga a few years before. Almost no one else bid on it and I won the auction. The lamp came with a nice letter from Annie documenting the lamp's authenticity.
One of these days, I'm going to wire it up and get an age-appropriate shade!
I have to admit ...
I have to admit I do remember that controversy. I also remember seeing it in archival photos of Manitoga's interior.
it would be interesting to know what Wright intended for the shade. So many of his shades were pretty out there, I wonder what shape and materials he had planned for it?
~Scott
sllab studios
http//www.sllab.net
Appropriate Shade
If you look at the lamp section in Kerr's RW book, you can see a lot of his lamps from the same time period. He really liked to use unusual shades on many of his lamps. A few years ago, I owned one of his wooden lamps that still had its original shade. It was made of parchment paper with a woven jute rope detail. In Kerr's book, there is a photo of the lamp taken when it was new with the same lamp shade. Unfortunately, the shade on my lamp had seen better days and it was really worn. I had considered having the shade remade, but then decided to sell the entire lamp, because I already had the RW S-shaped wooden lamp and I liked it better.
Great materials
Wright did use excellent materials for his shades. The lamp that's lighting the room I'm sitting in right now is a tall chartreuse ceramic RW piece with the original gold foil paper shade (see the middle photo on the far right side of page 113 of Kerr's 3rd edition). Awesome stuff!
~Scott
sllab studios
http//www.sllab.net
Lamp
I would love to see a photo of your RW lamp, Scott. Post it sometime when you get a chance.
I just love RW's lamps. I have a couple of his torchieres, a wooden S-shaped lamp and his metal birdcage lamp. I am still waiting for the day that I find his bulls-eye lamp or the boudoir bow tie lamp. I'll keep you posted!
Another RW Lamp
Your wish is my command. I just posted the RW lamp I mentioned here: http://modish.net/russel-wright-lamp
I have a couple others, but they're in pretty rough shape. This one has survived OK, although the shade is a bit worn.
~Scott
sllab studios
http//www.sllab.net
Thanks for spilling it and
Thanks for spilling it and for the following story about the lamp base. Fascinating!
I had no idea RW created
I had no idea RW created such a lamp base. When you said volcanic glaze was a clue, you sent me scurrying to my Bauer book and my Russel Wright books, but to no avail. I thought only Atlanta Bauer or Roseville might have such a glaze with pops but the design itself reminded me of a modern sculpturist more than an industrial designer. It clearly is a masterful piece and it has ovbiously found its way home. Great find!