This striking work of 1930s Bauhaus Art Deco design is by Carstens Uffrecht Pottery and attributed to the then lead designer Hildegard Delius (b. 1896 - d. 1955).
The geometric Bauhaus influence is very evident in the evenly-arched, stylised architectural form and further accentuated through subtle plays of cross-hatching within the glaze décor. The sumptuous hand-painted glaze is a base of Vanilla cream that is overlaid with a palette of orange shades, including Apricot, Marmalade, Amber, and Ochre, and further elevated through deeper Coffee brown tones.
Whether on display or used around the home, this work is timelessly stylish in design yet also an excellent representation of the Bauhaus Art Deco movement.
CONDITION Excellent. No chips or repairs. There is a single hairline stress crazing that is very faintly visible to the naked eye but commensurable with the age of the piece, please refer to photos as they form part of the condition report. The underside of the dish is marked with Carsten Uffrecht's stamp denoting 'DEK18' and model number '444'.
MEASUREMENTS Height: c. 2.6" / 6.5 cm tall (from base to rim) x c. 11.8" / 30 cm in length (across longest point). Width: c. 9.6" / 24.5 cm (across widest point) Base measurements: c." 6.4 / 16.2 cm x c. 5.9" / 15 cm. Unpackaged weight: c. 1.0 kg / 980 g
NOTES Dish will be securely packaged and shipping will be insured. Shipping will be combined for multiple items.
A BIT OF HISTORY Carstens Uffrecht that was founded in 1845 by Jacob Uffrecht. After the Second World War, the Carstens family lost their ceramics and porcelain factories in East German territory. In 1945, Carstens Uffrecht became the East German vases maker VEB Haldensleben. VEB stands for the German “Volkseigener Betrieb”, meaning a people-owned enterprise and related to state-owned workplaces in the GDR.
Hildegard Delius (1896-1955) and her husband Klaus Delius were the known designers from the mid-1920s to mid-1930s at Carstens Uffrecht, echoing the architectural vision of Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius.
VEB Haldensleben mainly concentrated on making vases of high quality. Like the vases of Strehla, the colours are more subdued than the vases from West Germany. Often there is at least one metallic glaze on the vases. When Germany was reunited in 1990, the former East German factory was again owned by the Carstens family and the name was changed to Carstens Keramik Rheinsberg.
