05/06/2026
Neil Brownsword will be talking to BBC radio Stoke about the Willow pattern exhibition at Spode museum today, Wednesday 10th June.
Due to popular demand, Willow Pattern Ceramics and Stories of โOtherโ has been extended until ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐๐๐.
๐๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฐ๐จ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฌ๐ด ๐ง๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐ณ๐ฆ๐จ๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ด๐ฆ๐ถ๐ฎ๐ด ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ช๐ท๐ข๐ต๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ญ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ค๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด, ๐ข๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ๐ด๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ค๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ญ๐ข๐ณ๐ญ๐บ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ด๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต๐ด ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ต๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ข๐ณ๐บ ๐ข๐ณ๐ต๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ช๐ค ๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ต๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ฆ๐น๐ฉ๐ช๐ฃ๐ช๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ท๐ช๐ต๐ฆ๐ด ๐ท๐ช๐ด๐ช๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ง๐ญ๐ฆ๐ค๐ต ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ๐น ๐ฉ๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ค๐ถ๐ญ๐ต๐ถ๐ณ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฆ๐น๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ๐จ๐ฆ, ๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฑ๐ต๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ต๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ข๐ค๐ณ๐ฐ๐ด๐ด ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต๐ด.
๐
๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ง๐?
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, when long-distance travel remained limited for most Europeans, knowledge of non-European societies was mediated largely through textual accounts, travellersโ narratives, and the circulation of imported goods. Among the most influential of these commodities was Chinese porcelain, whose importation into Europe played a significant role in shaping aesthetic tastes and stimulating technological and commercial developments within established centres of ceramic production, including the Staffordshire potteries that would later comprise Stoke-on-Trent.
The term โChinoiserieโ denotes a European artistic style that appropriates and reinterprets Chinese visual motifs and design principles, achieving particular prominence among elite consumers in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In the absence of sustained direct cultural exchange, such imagery often constructed an imagined and idealised vision of East Asia, expressed through decorative schemes featuring stylised landscapes, flora, fauna, and architectural forms. This aesthetic both reflected and reinforced contemporary European perceptions of the โOrientโ as exotic and other.
By the nineteenth century, Staffordshire manufacturers continued to capitalise on these motifs, producing wares that catered to enduring consumer demand for such imagery. This commercial practice unfolded within a broader historical context shaped by imperial expansion, global trade networks, and conflicts such as the O***m Wars, which underscore the asymmetrical power dynamics underpinning Anglo-Chinese relations during this period.
๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ:Spode Museum, Elenora St, Stoke-on-Trent ST4 1QD. Open Wednesday - Sunday 10.00am โ 4.00pm. Closed Monday and Tuesday. Free Entry.
The exhibition is kindly supported by , , , , , @1882 and
1. Sugar box, hybrid hard-paste porcelain, with over-glaze painted decoration; Thomas Wolfe, Stoke-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, c. 1790-1800
Loan courtesy of The Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent
2. Punch bowl, hybrid hard paste porcelain, with printed and painted decoration with 'Boy in the window' pattern number 425; New Hall, Shelton, Staffordshire, 1795-1800
Private Collection
3. Saucer, hybrid hard paste porcelain, with printed and painted decoration with chinoiserie scene, New Hall, Shelton, Staffordshire, 1795-1800
