Sculpture
Classification(s):
Pottery
Date: c. 1951-1976
Maker: Denise Wren (English, 1891 - 1979)
Organisation: Oxshott Pottery
Dimensions:
207 × 230 mm (20.7 × 23 cm)
Medium: Stoneware, unglazed and raku-fired
Object number: P1450B
Place of Production:England
DescriptionHand built stoneware elephant by Denise Wren. Raku-fired at the Oxshott Pottery, Surrey, England c.1971. The elephant has a figure riding on its back.
Potters signature incised to base (partially obscured) “D.K. Wren Oxshott”.
Label to base “D.K. Wren The Oxshott Surrey”.
Second label to base (faded) “P1450B”.
This larger elephant is one of two in the collection (P1373D).
Potters signature incised to base (partially obscured) “D.K. Wren Oxshott”.
Label to base “D.K. Wren The Oxshott Surrey”.
Second label to base (faded) “P1450B”.
This larger elephant is one of two in the collection (P1373D).
ProvenanceThis object was originally acquired for the Inner London Education Authority’s (ILEA) ‘Circulating Design Scheme’ collection.
The collection was instigated by the London Country Council (later the Greater London Council) and the Council of Industrial Design (COID). The collection’s original purpose was concerned with the teaching and dissemination of modern, ‘good design’.
The collection was established in 1951/52 as the ‘Experiment in Design Appreciation’, later renamed the ‘Circulating Design Scheme’.
The Circulating Design Scheme lent boxed showcases to London schools. The showcases contained handling objects, material samples and interpretation on a specific subject.
COID withdrew its involvement in the Scheme in 1957. After which time, it was managed exclusively by the London County Council from 1957-1963.
After the administrative restructuring of London authorities, the Scheme was jointly managed by the Greater London Council and the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) from 1963 – 1976.
The Scheme was operational until 1976 when the collections were withdrawn from circulation. ILEA was abolished in the late 1980s and the collection was donated to Camberwell College of Arts in 1989/90.
ILEA was responsible for secondary and tertiary education in the inner London boroughs, this included Camberwell.
The collection was instigated by the London Country Council (later the Greater London Council) and the Council of Industrial Design (COID). The collection’s original purpose was concerned with the teaching and dissemination of modern, ‘good design’.
The collection was established in 1951/52 as the ‘Experiment in Design Appreciation’, later renamed the ‘Circulating Design Scheme’.
The Circulating Design Scheme lent boxed showcases to London schools. The showcases contained handling objects, material samples and interpretation on a specific subject.
COID withdrew its involvement in the Scheme in 1957. After which time, it was managed exclusively by the London County Council from 1957-1963.
After the administrative restructuring of London authorities, the Scheme was jointly managed by the Greater London Council and the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) from 1963 – 1976.
The Scheme was operational until 1976 when the collections were withdrawn from circulation. ILEA was abolished in the late 1980s and the collection was donated to Camberwell College of Arts in 1989/90.
ILEA was responsible for secondary and tertiary education in the inner London boroughs, this included Camberwell.
NotesBorn in Australia, Denise Wren emigrated to England in 1899. Wren enrolled at Kingston-upon-Thames School of Art, where she studied under the Art Nouveau designer, Archibald Knox. In 1915 she took evening classes at Camberwell School of Art, eventually setting up her own pottery. Denise married Henry Wren and together they set up a workshop, the Oxshott Pottery at Potters Croft, Surrey. Wren’s earlier work tended to be earthenware; she later produced stoneware salt-glazed pots. She is particularly known for her raku elephants, made of unglazed stoneware and raku-fired.
