Serving Bowl c. 1775

This is a serving bowl with a collection of plates and saucers, made anonymously, date unknown. Notice how the subtle off-white of the ceramic gives it a delicate, almost ethereal quality. This is achieved with a firing technique called 'creamware', perfected in the mid-1700s. Creamware was not just a material, but a signifier. It was developed to mimic the expensive porcelains that were being imported from China, but it was much more affordable to produce, especially in industrialized potteries. What's interesting is the tension between imitation and innovation. Creamware allowed for the production of high-end looking ceramics for a wider market, which also meant new designs, new forms. This democratizing effect of industrial production, making luxury available to a growing middle class, is an important legacy of ceramics like this serving bowl. So, next time you see a piece of creamware, think about the layers of history it represents.