The Story of Imari Design
Have you heard the term "Imari"? Most people who own some 19th Century porcelain will probably have a piece of English Imari porcelain in their cupboard - and perhaps an original Chinese or Japanese piece. Today, I am showing you an overdue column I wrote for Homes & Antiques, this time with the story about Imari.
Originating in Japan, this beautiful style developed in the 17th and 18th Century and came to Britain not long after, mostly through porcelain imported first from Japan, then from China. It became a very popular style, and British porcelain decorators quickly adapted it to their own tastes, adding very Western details such as English roses and other flowers... and sometimes turning the powerful Japanese dragons into strange monsters!
You can read the full story in my article, which you can find here... and if you want to read all my columns hot off the press, see below for a discounted subscription link to Homes & Antiques.
To read the column in Homes & Antiques
For a discounted subscription, head to Homes & Antiques, it is a wonderful magazine and you will be able to catch my monthly column about British porcelain. You can get a discounted subscription and order a free copy here. The free issue contains an interview with myself and several other collectors. The magazine is delivered all over the world but you can also get a digital subscription.
The Murray Pollinger Collection of Samuel Alcock
In the meantime, this wonderful collection is still available. Many pieces have been snapped up in the last three weeks, but there are still plenty to choose from... and even just going through the catalogue is a joy! I have now started to release small batches of the items into my normal shop stock, but if you'd like to get access to the whole collection, please make sure you are a subscriber so you receive an email with links to the catalogue, more information about Murray and his wonderful collection, and the shop page with the items for sale.
Where to find things
You can find all my available Imari pieces here, and all my available stock is here. If you always want to see the latest additions, follow me on Instagram... I post pictures and a story several times a week.
Happy weekend!
Detail of a Chamberlain Worcester dish from about 1805 with the "Nelson" pattern; this Worcestershire painter did a great job, but had clearly never seen a lion in his life!
My available Imari treasures:
