Good news for collectors of the 1960's and 70's West German Pottery. There's an exhibit coming up (in England), and there will be an accompanying book.......one in English at last. Go to:

Mark Hill Publishing for more information.

GinFor's Odditiques
(GINny and FORrest Poston's Oddities and Antiques)
(Cats and batteries not included.)

West German Companies, Designers, and Potters

West German Images and Information: Essay: A Divine and Delightful Madness: An Introduction to W. German Pottery Essay: Reputation, Reality, and Respect: Sorting Out West German Pottery West German Pottery Marks (Pictures of various marks, bases, and labels) Photo Gallery of West German items (pictures of items we've had in the past few years, divided by company when possible). You are Here--> Companies, Potters, Designers (Information about some of the particular companies, studio potters, and designers active during the West German era.)

When asking questions: 1. It really, really helps if you send pictures of the item and the bottom (e-mail or snail mail is fine). 2. When sending pictures by e-mail, please try to keep the file size down. A resolution of 72 ppi is fine for viewing on a monitor. (Higher qualities are mostly for getting better results on a printed version.). 3. If you get a message saying something about the e-mail or picture being rejected (happened recently), it's not us doing it. It means something about the file couldn't be accepted by some part of the internet. Too large a file or wrong file type is the most likely problem. Thanks to one and all. Forrest (the "for" part of ginfor)

 Bay Keramik: Started by Eduard Bay in 1933. I think Bay died in 1978, but the company may still be in operation. Bay was one of the top producers from the beginning of the West German era. They ranked with Scheurich and Ruscha for quantity, variety, and quality of production.

Best known early lines are Florenz (1955), Zurich (1958), Rheims (1960), Istanbul (1961), and Ravenna (1961)

 Gramann

Siegfried Gramann took over the family business from his father, Karl, in 1948. The company was located in Römhild. The most common mark shows a T over R for Töpferei, Römhild. Legibility varies.

Jasba (1926- )

I originally thought Jasba was one of the second tier companies, but the more pieces I can attribute to them, the higher my opinion grows. The name comes from the name of the founder: Jakob Schwaderlapp Baumbach. (My thanks to Christopher Fohr, current GM at Fohr Keramik, for this interesting note.

Karlsruhe (1901 - )

This is one of the few companies to make high quality art pottery all through the 20th century. The company is located in Karlsruhe, and is also called Karlsruher, or Grand Ducal Majolica. There is a book on the company, and it lists the date and artist to match the item number found on most items. The range in style is broad, but the quality is always high from what I've seen. They are also one of the companies to make some great wall plaques.

Mans, Bodo

Worked with Picasso designs for Madoura in Vallauris; in 1960 began doing form and decoration designs for Bay; went freelance in 1975; designed Rheims (1960), Istanbul (1961), and Ravenna (1961); probably because of the French experience, Mans' designs are currently among the most sought by collectors. Personally, they don't impress me all that much, but I've never seen one in person, either.

Ruscha (1905-1996)

This is clearly one of the top companies of the era. The best pieces sometimes have a Ruscha Art label. Many of the forms were designed by Kurt Tschörner, who deserves much more recognition. The Ruscha plaques are also worth looking for, and some are quite large.

The 313 form introduced in 1954 is one of the tre classics and was in production until the factory closed. It is available in at least 50 different glaze treatments.

Ruscha is also known for Domino (1954), Milano (1954), Masken, (1956), Monaco (1956).

One of the most rare lines is Filigran by Adele Bolz. Intricate figural, animal, and geometric designs cut through the glaze.

I recently received a copy of a Ruscha catalog that has helped attribute numerous pieces to Ruscha that I would not have expected. My opinion of Ruscha was already high, but they may well now be my favorite.

Schäffenacker, Helmut

One of the top studio potters, retired in the early or mid 1990's; the plaques are most sort by collectors currently, but his vases are also well worth collecting

The most common Scheurich marked (when marked at all) is simply an embossed "Scheurich Keramik". There is also an embosed 3-circle mark similar to the design in the label above. I believe this is a fairly recent mark but have not been able to confirm that. Unfortunately, Scheurich has not kept a clear history of their work.

Scheurich Keramik (1954- )

Although they got a late start, Scheurich soon became the largest producer of commercial art pottery in Germany; still in business but with few records of earlier production.

I recently learned that Scheurich now has the rights to the Ruscha name and uses it on special lines. Unfortunately, I haven't seen an example to see how it compares to original Ruscha marks. Style and color will be the best ways to attribute and date the work for now.

Steuler (1918-1996)

Steuler seems to have hit a special stride from the mid 1960's into the 70's, producing some great work. The Cari Zalloni designs from this period often have great architechtural qualities.

Uhlemeyer, Richard (1900-1954)

Studio pottery, one of the strong early forces moving toward modern designs, opened company in 1935, continued operation after his death until 1961

Wächtersbach

Opened in 1832, one of the adaptable companies that has managed to stay in operation even now

 Welling, Hans

Designer for Ruscha, Ceramano, Scheurich, and others

  Wörsdörfer, Cilli

Designer for Ruscha and Jasba

 Cari Zalloni

Designed for Steuler Keramik. Later opened Carzal, known for designer eyeglasses.

GO TO:

Art Pottery (American and European art pottery other than mid century items)

Pottery and Porcelain (Figurines, plates, vases, etc.)

Mid-Century Design (Mid Century pottery, currently featuring one of the best selections of studio and W. German pottery in the U.S.)

Studio Pottery (While many of these items can be found in other categories, they are also gathered here for those with a special interest in studio work.)

Glass (art glass, stemware, EAPG, Depression, Elegant, etc.)     

Metalware (Various metal items and misc. vases, inkwells, etc.)      

Paintings (oils, watercolors, prints, 19th and 20th century American and European)

Links

Pages About Us

Meet the Gin and the For

Meet the "staff"

The Cor-purr-ate Story (Glyph's Rise to Power)

Contact Information (Phone, etc.)

Essays and Information:

Book Review: Fat Lava, West German Ceramics of the 1960s & 70s

Collecting West German Pottery: Thoughts, Philosophy, and History

A Divine and Delightful Madness: An Intro to W. German Pottery

Learning the Basics about West German Pottery (This is the most in depth essay.)

West German Pottery Marks

W. German Companies, Designers, and Studio Potters

West German Picture Gallery and Identification Aid (pictures of items we've had over the last 3 years)

To Buy or Not To
Buy:  Going Where Price Guides End (thoughts about collecting, aesthetics, and health)

Get the Picture Straight: The Basics of Selling Glass and Pottery on the Internet (how to write item listings, matters of photography, etc.)

E-MAIL US

Ginfor's Odditiques (click to
return "home")

Pedagogy, Philosophy and Nonsense (my "other" site: writing, learning, and odd ideas like long hair and fairy god-princesses)