Basalt, Spaces Hunters & Gatherers October 2009

t 1'

.i

/

That Otd

BtackMagrc / t

Bold,graPhicandcollectible, WedgwoodbasattPiecescan add a dashof the dramaticto any interior

B Y P arR l cl a

tt

S uacxgl roP o

black is sterlingand will last forever"'wrote Tn" Wedgwood I tosiahWedgwoodin 1773ln his letter his wares' power of was ruminatingon the staying to colorfulglazesto potteryrangingfrom creamware piecesas denseand darkas autumnnightsWedgwood 'called this blackpotterybasalt' my editorassignsme subiectsfor these Sometimes togetherand columnsand somettmeswe brainstorm lt's irrel"What you thinking?" are sometimesshesays' for the evanttqyou, I suppose,becauseyou are along but subiect' the of how we determine ride regardless l'm thinking this month is a personalfavoriteBasalt basal t.I can' tstopthi nki ngaboutbasal t'

Twoofthefirstde ate rsIspok ewit hwr ink ledt heir s t y lis h gr een' blue and y ellown o s es." What ls this' a fu ne ral?Pink ' one "No ldont y e s N one of my clie nts colle c t bas alt "' s aid t he ot her W ellW ell' I h a v ebasaltan d I do n't like b as alt "'s aid up' l i k eit and losiah liked it so le t ' s s ee what ' s p ot t er in St af f or ds hir e'England'in losrahWed gwo odwas a was a potter ln fact' the late 18th century.Wedgwood'sfather liv ings at t he whee l ' m u ch of his exten de d family m ade t heir wit h ' iah did s om e laz z yt hings F o l low inghis ap pre nticeshiplos he f or him s elf W hile was c l a yand glazea nd mad e q uite a nam e his f ir s t hom e r un af t e r c reat inga very solid b usine s s he hit Charlotte in 1765 sendinga creamwaretea service to Oueen r e- c hr is t ent he pr oduc t S h eliked it so mu ch she a llow edhim t o lit t le lik e s howingup on O u een' sW a re,which a t the ti m e was a park' Oprah'sFavoriteThings Out of the

of onfiquedeolers' Oppositeond right; Fromthecollection scolloped-edge tTgo BruceBurstertondCorl Wheot,o circa on rBth-centurg sugorbowl ond creomersei ond in t'ront' bos-relie/ioboccojor' Neoclossicol

ry ShortlY thereafter Wedgwood Perfected a process to create a superior had black ceramic.Staffordshirepotters long produceda black stonewarecalled product EgyptianBlack,but Wedgwood's called Wedgwood was finer and sturdier' the it Black Basalt after volcanic rock of I mean black' I say samename.And when black black.It is not charcoalor bark lt's and smoothand chalkY' Wedgwoodintroducedhis BlackBasalt to the marketin 1768lt had a few things goingfor it. First,and somewhatoddly'it white wasalmosta fashionaccessoryPale' Do skinwasall the rage.Handsespecially much how of you havea mental picture pouring whiteryour handswould appear tea, your delicatedigits entwinedaround Can the handleof a chalkyblackteapot? pampered your you imaginehow striking pawswould appearcradlingan inky cup? Ladiesin the 18thcenturycertainlycould' But not all basaltwas teawareWhen with Wedgwoodopened his new factory partnerThomasBentleyin 1769'he named it Etruriaafterthe particularlysophisticated areaof centralltaly in the first century by B.C.Classicalforms of pottery created at the Greeksand Romanswere in vogue beyond the time, and Wedgwoodlooked productsand took traditionalStaffordshire direction' his collectionsin a Neoclassical pieces Someof the most stunningbasalt the wear are vases,urnsand plaquesthat designsof ancienttimes Laurel bas-relief of and grapevinebordersdefine scenes maidensand animalsand mythicalcreaheads tures. Handlesare ram's or lion's or scrolls.The stunningsubstancecrafted phistrikingbustsof leadersof countries' losophYand the arts'

S om e p ieces o f b asalt ar e bas ic blac k S mootlr a nd sculp tura l O t lr er piec es hav e tlre raise clde tailin g' a nd ot her s s t ill hav e a paint ed d esign , o ften in a m at t e or angey-red, rnirn icking a ncient Cr eek v es s els t hat Weclgwo odrn od ele df r om Sir W illiam of Etruscan'Greclland Hamilton's Colit'ctiorr pu blishedin 1766 Artli4u ilirs R orrrau

ry "Carl and I have iust startedpicking piecesup," says BruceBurstert'an area ant i q u ed e alerof hisandhisp a rtn e r' sC' a rl Wheat,growingcollection."MostlyI seeit at showsand estatesales.lt isn'tas common aroundhereso stylishpeopletendto snapit up."Any basaltcollector,including

"Itlends itself to a certam

high ptyle,a

certam taste. It's fabulous:' -Bruce Burstert

Burstertand Wheat,can easily name a classifavoritepiece."l useda pairof 1940s saysBurstert' calurnson a client'smantel," in "Andat Christmas time I put pineapples them.Theyarefabulous." I'vebeenon the hunt as well and have also pickedup a few pieces l ran across a lovelybowl at the RiverMarketAntique Mall and somecups from MorningGlory Antiqueson State Line. Many designers will tell you that everyroom needsa little black.Basaltcan add a dash of tension' that graphicvisualpunchthat nearlyany roomcoulduse. Basaltis not easyto find in Kansas City.lt apparentlyappealsto a very particular taste. But if you interpretthese crispclassicformsas marvelousand not morbid,theycanbe found.You'lliust have to beatme to them.i