Wall pocket 1760 - 1770

This Whieldon-type wall pocket reflects the eighteenth-century fashion for bringing nature indoors. As a social historian, I’m interested in the ways objects like this created meaning through their visual codes, cultural references, and historical associations. Whieldon ware originated in England, and this piece can be associated with similar types of pottery from the period. The emphasis on rustic, organic forms, and naturalistic colors, reflect the aesthetic values of the period. This aesthetic extended to the fashion for filling such objects with cut flowers or herbs from the garden, and speaks to the relationship between cultivated nature and the domestic space. Objects like this reflect a world in which the emerging middle classes sought to emulate the aristocracy through consumer choices. Catalogues and trade publications can tell us more about how these objects were marketed and consumed. Ultimately, the wall pocket reminds us that the meaning of art is always contingent on its social and institutional context.