Wedgwood

• 1. Founding And Early Innovations

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  On the 1st of May 1759, Josiah Wedgwood opened a pottery firm in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent. He had previously worked with Thomas Whieldon until that partnership ended in 1759. A green ceramic glaze he developed encouraged him to start his own business. Relatives leased him the Ivy House for this new venture. His marriage to Sarah Wedgwood provided a sizable dowry to launch the company. In 1765, he created creamware, a fine glazed earthenware that became the main body for his tablewares. Queen Charlotte received a teaset for twelve from him that same year. She gave official permission to call it Queen's Ware from 1767. This form sold extremely well across Europe and to America. It was relatively light, saving on transport costs and import tariffs. The product caused considerable disruption to makers of European faience and delftware. Some went out of business while others adopted English-style bodies themselves. Wedgwood developed industrial innovations including accurate kiln temperature measurement. He also created dry-bodied stonewares like black basalt by 1769. These were designed to be sold unglazed.

• 2. Jasperware And Neoclassical Design

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  Wedgwood blue remains the most popular color for Jasperware to this day. Experiments required more than 3,000 samples to achieve the perfect shade. Josiah Wedgwood was elected a member of the Royal Society in 1783 for his pyrometric beads. From 1787 to 1794, the firm ran a studio in Rome producing wax models for reliefs. Young Neoclassical artists worked there under the direction of Henry Webber. The most famous design is Wedgwood's copy of the Portland Vase lent by the British Museum. Many motifs came from ancient mythologies including Roman, Greek, and Egyptian sources. Archaeological fever caught the imagination of many artists during that era. Nothing could have been more suitable to satisfy huge business demand than replicas of ancient artefacts. The main Wedgwood motifs in jasperware were highly influenced by these ancient cultures. Great Britain was expanding its empire at the time. The firm produced replicas of ancient artefacts to meet this demand. In recent years, the Wedgwood Prestige collection continued to sell replicas of original designs. Modern neo-classical style jasperware also continues to be made.

• 3. Artists And Collaborative Networks

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  William Hackwood worked for Wedgwood from 1769 until 1832 starting at around age thirteen. He became the main modeller in the factory finishing moulds for others' designs. John Flaxman Junior was employed as a modeller and designer from 1775 when he was nineteen years old. His Dancing Hours may be his best known design. Lady Elizabeth Templetown, Emma Crewe, and Lady Diana Beauclerk produced designs in a softer Romantic version of Neoclassical style. Henry Webber became chief sculptor in 1785 holding the position until 1806. He worked on the replica Portland Vase with Flaxman and Josiah II. They were sent to Italy on a Grand Tour to look at establishing a modelling studio in Rome. Giuseppe Ceracchi was an Italian sculptor in England between 1773 and 1781. William Blake engraved for Wedgwood's china catalogues in 1815. Emile Lessore came to England in 1858 joining Wedgwood after a few months at Mintons. His speciality was enamel paintings mostly landscapes on plaques fetching very high prices. Daisy Makeig-Jones joined as an apprentice painter in 1909 launching her Fairyland Lustre range in 1915.

• 4. Family Leadership And Industrial Expansion

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  Thomas Byerley, Josiah's nephew, became a partner and was mainly in charge for some years. The Napoleonic Wars made exporting to Europe impossible for long periods leaving export markets in disarray. After the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 there was a dramatic drop in vital exports to America. Joss bought Jack out continuing as sole owner after financial difficulties forced them to confront reality. Between partners and other debtors the firm was owed some £67,000. Godfrey Wedgwood became a partner in 1859 having considerable success reviving the firm. By 1859 the factory had 445 employees. Bathroom ceramics such as sinks and lavatories were important in recent decades. They introduced porcelain later with bone china from 1812. Lustre ware appeared by 1810 followed by Carrara Parian ware in 1848. Stone China arrived around 1827 but was not especially successful. Neoclassicism became less fashionable prompting floral enamels on black basalt wares from around 1805. Josiah Wedgwood V turned the company's fortunes around managing from 1930 until 1968. He moved production to Barlaston designed by Keith Murray between 1938 and 1940.

• 5. Modern Consolidation And Ownership Changes

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  In 1968 Wedgwood purchased many other Staffordshire potteries including Mason's Ironstone and Johnson Brothers. In 1979 they bought the Franciscan Ceramics division of Interpace in the United States. The Los Angeles plant closed in 1984 moving production to Johnson Brothers in Britain. Waterford Glass Group plc purchased Wedgwood plc for US$360 million in 1986 forming Waterford Wedgwood plc. Patrick Byrne served as CEO from early 1987 to early 1989 reducing patterns from over 400 to around 240. From the 1st of January 2001 Tony O'Reilly Junior was Deputy CEO appointed CEO in November resigning September 2005. Moira Gavin succeeded him until administration in January 2009. KPS Capital Partners acquired assets on the 27th of February 2009 placing them into WWRD Holdings Limited. Fiskars agreed to buy 100% of holdings in May 2015 completing acquisition the 2nd of July 2015. Complaints arose about misleading labelling when Indonesian factory products were sold labelled Wedgwood England.

• 6. Museums And Cultural Preservation

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  The first formal museum opened in May 1906 with curator Isaac Cook at the main Etruria works. Contents were stored during the Second World War and relaunched in a gallery at Barlaston in 1952. A new purpose-built visitor centre and museum was built in Barlaston in 1975 remodelled in 1985. A video theatre added alongside an expanded demonstration area where visitors could watch pottery being made. Further renovation costing £4.5 million occurred in 2000 including access to the main factory itself. The museum closed in 2000 reopening the 24th of October 2008 in a new multimillion-pound building. In June 2009 the Wedgwood Museum won a UK Art Fund Prize for Museums and Art Galleries. The archive was inscribed in UNESCO's UK Memory of the World Register in May 2011. The collection held 80,000 works of art ceramics manuscripts letters and photographs facing sale to satisfy pension debts. The Heritage Lottery Fund and various trusts contributed donations purchasing the collection on the 1st of December 2014. The collection is now part of the wider World of Wedgwood tourist destination site featuring award winning tea rooms.