Plate c. 1936

Albert Eyth made this plate design, with its decorative bird, sometime between 1870 and 1910. I love the way the blue seeps into the white of the plate, like a summer sky just before a storm. I can imagine him turning the plate slowly as he applies the design, building up the image with a sense of care and precision. The colors, a vivid yellow and red, against the speckled blue, give the bird a regal air. He’s a fancy fellow perched on what appears to be a curly vine. I wonder if the artist sketched the bird first, or if he let the brush lead the way? There's a conversation happening here, a dialogue between the functional object and the impulse to decorate, to elevate the everyday into something extraordinary. The plate isn't just a surface; it's a canvas where art and life meet!