1 of 16
Slide Notes
Blue and white transferware plates were hugely popular in the 19th century for their bucolic pastoral scenes. Over the past 30 years, artist Paul Scott, who lives in Cumbria, has updated the medium to address some very modern issues: the climate emergency, the refugee crisis, tensions in the Middle East. ‘The original genre depicts a colonial, imperialist view of the world,’ he says. ‘My concern has been to rebalance the narrative with something more contemporary and inclusive.’
Using a mix of antique and specially commissioned plates, he refires the ceramics to let his prints sink into the glaze. ‘I can raise issues people don’t expect to see on blue and white plates: they are surprised, and it makes them look again at historic pieces.’
Using a mix of antique and specially commissioned plates, he refires the ceramics to let his prints sink into the glaze. ‘I can raise issues people don’t expect to see on blue and white plates: they are surprised, and it makes them look again at historic pieces.’
Plates
Paul Scott.an artist who who lives in Cumbria, has repurposed these original blue and white transferware plates to address some very modern issues.
MORE DECKS TO EXPLORE
PRESENTATION OUTLINE
PLATES
NEW STORIES TOLD ON OLD CROCKERY
Blue and white transferware plates were hugely popular in the 19th century for their bucolic pastoral scenes. Over the past 30 years, artist Paul Scott, who lives in Cumbria, has updated the medium to address some very modern issues: the climate emergency, the refugee crisis, tensions in the Middle East. ‘The original genre depicts a colonial, imperialist view of the world,’ he says. ‘My concern has been to rebalance the narrative with something more contemporary and inclusive.’
Using a mix of antique and specially commissioned plates, he refires the ceramics to let his prints sink into the glaze. ‘I can raise issues people don’t expect to see on blue and white plates: they are surprised, and it makes them look again at historic pieces.’
Using a mix of antique and specially commissioned plates, he refires the ceramics to let his prints sink into the glaze. ‘I can raise issues people don’t expect to see on blue and white plates: they are surprised, and it makes them look again at historic pieces.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Across the
Borderline No 4 (Trumpian Campaigne),
2020
Transfer print collage on shell-edge
pearlware platter, c1820.
Paul Scott: ‘The 1,954 miles from the Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico are marked by a series of intermittent vertical barriers, the border “wall”. As of November 2021, 3,790 immigrants have died trying to cross the vast Arizona Sonoran desert; many more have not been found.’
Borderline No 4 (Trumpian Campaigne),
2020
Transfer print collage on shell-edge
pearlware platter, c1820.
Paul Scott: ‘The 1,954 miles from the Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico are marked by a series of intermittent vertical barriers, the border “wall”. As of November 2021, 3,790 immigrants have died trying to cross the vast Arizona Sonoran desert; many more have not been found.’
Untitled Slide
Palestine, Gaza, 04/08/03, 2021
Transfer print collage on partially erased
Adams Palestine dessert plate, c1840.
‘Scenes of romantic, exotic landscapes
graced the surface of many 19th-century
transferwares. They included patterns with
Middle Eastern titles: Syria, Damascus,
Aleppo, Palmyra and Palestine. I have
updated a number of these antique wares
with images depicting contemporary
realities.’
Transfer print collage on partially erased
Adams Palestine dessert plate, c1840.
‘Scenes of romantic, exotic landscapes
graced the surface of many 19th-century
transferwares. They included patterns with
Middle Eastern titles: Syria, Damascus,
Aleppo, Palmyra and Palestine. I have
updated a number of these antique wares
with images depicting contemporary
realities.’
Untitled Slide
Cumbrian Blue(s), New American Scenery,
Broken Treaties, Standing Rock, No 4. After
Ryan Vizzions, with Mega Mae Plenty Chief,
Lakota Oyate on horseback
Transfer print collage on William Penn's
Treaty transferware plate by Thomas
Goodwin, c1835.
‘The original print on the plate is based on
Benjamin West's iconic painting of William Penn's treaty. The overlayed print based on Ryan Vizzion's famous photograph of the Standing Rock protests in 2013 depicts the disappointingly
real.’
Broken Treaties, Standing Rock, No 4. After
Ryan Vizzions, with Mega Mae Plenty Chief,
Lakota Oyate on horseback
Transfer print collage on William Penn's
Treaty transferware plate by Thomas
Goodwin, c1835.
‘The original print on the plate is based on
Benjamin West's iconic painting of William Penn's treaty. The overlayed print based on Ryan Vizzion's famous photograph of the Standing Rock protests in 2013 depicts the disappointingly
real.’
Untitled Slide
Refugee Series No 4, 2021
Transfer print collage on pearlware shell
edge platter c1820.
‘One of a series of works examining the plight of refugees and those fleeing conflict in search of a safer life.’
Transfer print collage on pearlware shell
edge platter c1820.
‘One of a series of works examining the plight of refugees and those fleeing conflict in search of a safer life.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Residual Waste
(Texas) No 5, 2022
Transfer print collage on pearlware shell
edge platter, c1820.
‘The original antique platter was discoloured from years of use. On refiring, the glaze regained its original sheen - however, brown "blooms"
appeared on the surface. It seemed the perfect canvas for a collage depicting a Corpus Christi oil refinery, referencing the industry's noxious residual wastes.’
(Texas) No 5, 2022
Transfer print collage on pearlware shell
edge platter, c1820.
‘The original antique platter was discoloured from years of use. On refiring, the glaze regained its original sheen - however, brown "blooms"
appeared on the surface. It seemed the perfect canvas for a collage depicting a Corpus Christi oil refinery, referencing the industry's noxious residual wastes.’
Untitled Slide
Souvenir of Bristol, June 7 2020-1
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘This artwork is one of a small series, an individually collaged piece commemorating the events of June 2020, when Black Lives Matter protesters dragged the statue of slave trader Edward Colston from his pedestal in the heart of Bristol.’
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘This artwork is one of a small series, an individually collaged piece commemorating the events of June 2020, when Black Lives Matter protesters dragged the statue of slave trader Edward Colston from his pedestal in the heart of Bristol.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Souvenir of
Portland, OR, Black Lives Matter (After
Killen & Howard)/ Trumpian Campaigne No
5,2021.
‘Following George Floyd's death, protests
erupted in cities around the world. Donald
Trump's dispatch of a homeland security
task force reinvigorated Black Lives Matter
protests in Portland Oregon, as federal
agents in camouflage snatched protesters
off the streets and severely beat others.’
Portland, OR, Black Lives Matter (After
Killen & Howard)/ Trumpian Campaigne No
5,2021.
‘Following George Floyd's death, protests
erupted in cities around the world. Donald
Trump's dispatch of a homeland security
task force reinvigorated Black Lives Matter
protests in Portland Oregon, as federal
agents in camouflage snatched protesters
off the streets and severely beat others.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Ghost Gardens of
Detroit No 2/3, 2021
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘On visiting Detroit in 2018, nothing prepared me for the sheer scale of devastation. As a long time gardener, one of the things that intrigued me were the “exotic” plants growing amongst the wilderness of demolished neighbourhoods, which are referred to as "ghost gardens" by journalist Charlie Leduff.’
Detroit No 2/3, 2021
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘On visiting Detroit in 2018, nothing prepared me for the sheer scale of devastation. As a long time gardener, one of the things that intrigued me were the “exotic” plants growing amongst the wilderness of demolished neighbourhoods, which are referred to as "ghost gardens" by journalist Charlie Leduff.’
Untitled Slide
California Wildfires No 2, 2020
Transfer print collage on partially erased
Rowland & Marsellus souvenir ware, c1910.
‘The original plate is typical of Staffordshire
souvenir transferwares. This artwork updates by alluding to the increasingly fierce, uncontrollable wildfires brought on by climate change, threatening the very existence of the beauties of California.’
Transfer print collage on partially erased
Rowland & Marsellus souvenir ware, c1910.
‘The original plate is typical of Staffordshire
souvenir transferwares. This artwork updates by alluding to the increasingly fierce, uncontrollable wildfires brought on by climate change, threatening the very existence of the beauties of California.’
Untitled Slide
Foot and Mouth No 5, After Macleod, Darwell
and May Screenprint (transfer) on Royal Worcester bone china platter, 2001.
‘I live in a small rural Cumbria village, and the foot-and-mouth crisis had a devastating long-term impact. This commemorative bone china
carving platter (made from calcined cattle
bones) acts as a canvas for a collage based
on iconic photographs of the time.’
and May Screenprint (transfer) on Royal Worcester bone china platter, 2001.
‘I live in a small rural Cumbria village, and the foot-and-mouth crisis had a devastating long-term impact. This commemorative bone china
carving platter (made from calcined cattle
bones) acts as a canvas for a collage based
on iconic photographs of the time.’
Untitled Slide
Italian, Sampler No 4 (Spode Works Closed)
Transfer print collage on pearlware platter,
2021.
‘The final piece from a series of artworks marking the closure of the Spode works in 2009 after the company's bankruptcy, the work uses salvaged Italian transfers from the abandoned factory. A commemorative for Spode works, which closed in 2009 after the company's bankruptcy, as well as for the wider loss of skills and knowledge which have continued to hemorrhage away following the collapse of the British manufacturing industry in the early part of the 21st century.’
Transfer print collage on pearlware platter,
2021.
‘The final piece from a series of artworks marking the closure of the Spode works in 2009 after the company's bankruptcy, the work uses salvaged Italian transfers from the abandoned factory. A commemorative for Spode works, which closed in 2009 after the company's bankruptcy, as well as for the wider loss of skills and knowledge which have continued to hemorrhage away following the collapse of the British manufacturing industry in the early part of the 21st century.’
Untitled Slide
British Lakes (2022)
Transfer print collage on partially erased
Ralph Stevenson & Son platter, C1830.
‘Early 19th-century transferwares depicted idealised pastoral landscapes. In my
contemporary update, a low-flying RAF jet
disturbs the serenity, while in the foreground a road, motorhome and stationary traffic replace the original rural scene containing figures making hay.’
Transfer print collage on partially erased
Ralph Stevenson & Son platter, C1830.
‘Early 19th-century transferwares depicted idealised pastoral landscapes. In my
contemporary update, a low-flying RAF jet
disturbs the serenity, while in the foreground a road, motorhome and stationary traffic replace the original rural scene containing figures making hay.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Ghost Gardens of
Detroit No 1/3, 2021
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘On visiting Detroit in 2018, nothing prepared me for the sheer scale of devastation. As a long time gardener, one of the things that intrigued me were the “exotic” plants growing amongst the wilderness of demolished neighbourhoods, which are referred to as "ghost gardens" by journalist Charlie LeDuff.’
Detroit No 1/3, 2021
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘On visiting Detroit in 2018, nothing prepared me for the sheer scale of devastation. As a long time gardener, one of the things that intrigued me were the “exotic” plants growing amongst the wilderness of demolished neighbourhoods, which are referred to as "ghost gardens" by journalist Charlie LeDuff.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Fleurs.de.sel's New
York, Canal Street No 3, 2020
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘From a series of 12 plates depicting New York, based on photographs by Leah Mitch, with an Oak Leaf border pattern by former Spode engraver Paul Holdway. The artworks update early 19th century transferwares by Ralph Stevenson.’
York, Canal Street No 3, 2020
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate.
‘From a series of 12 plates depicting New York, based on photographs by Leah Mitch, with an Oak Leaf border pattern by former Spode engraver Paul Holdway. The artworks update early 19th century transferwares by Ralph Stevenson.’
Untitled Slide
New American Scenery, Souvenir of
Shiprock No 5, 2020
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate
with uranium glass and corona bottle shards
from base of Shiprock.
‘Shiprock is associated with a 400,000 m2 nuclear waste dump. The U.S. government
knowingly exposed the local population to
dangerous levels of radioactivity, resulting
in the premature deaths of a generation of
Navajo miners and their families.’
Shiprock No 5, 2020
Transfer print collage on pearlware plate
with uranium glass and corona bottle shards
from base of Shiprock.
‘Shiprock is associated with a 400,000 m2 nuclear waste dump. The U.S. government
knowingly exposed the local population to
dangerous levels of radioactivity, resulting
in the premature deaths of a generation of
Navajo miners and their families.’
