Vintage Modern Ceramics… Not Your Grandmother’s Antiques

Some folks assume that you only use antique shops as a source for your interior decorating if you are going for an old fashioned look – American or Continental Country, Victorian or Edwardian. Not so. These days antique shops are stocking much that is sleek, smart and modern.
That should be Modern with a capital “M,” for the Modernist movement that dominated the mid-20th Century from the 1920s to the 1960s. From the geometric shapes of early Art Deco to the organic forms of the 1950s and ‘60s, these things are futuristic, forward looking, and optimistic. In other words, they’re perfect for the contemporary home.
Most things in most antique shops will range from 50 to 150 years old, and the Modern style is right there. In other columns this summer, I’ll ask you to keep your eyes open for Modernist furniture, lighting and glass. But today let’s look for ceramics, especially what’s most available and affordable.
Among the European ceramics to look for, check out Burleigh Ware and Carlton Ware from England, much more accessible than Clarice Cliff’s expensive Bizarre Ware. German lusterware from the ‘20s and the Japanese version from the ‘30s can also be easy on the wallet.
Rosenthal, the quality Bavarian porcelain maker, hired top German and Scandinavian designers in the early 1960s for their Modern Studio Line, not yet discovered by the big Modern collectors.
Some pieces in Roseville’s Futura pattern from the 1930s can be quite pricey, and so can those Glidden pieces from Alfred University in the 1940s and ‘50s. But other American pottery companies offered up some chic shapes once and a while. Look for Royal Haeger, Gonder, Abingdon, RumRill, Camark, and, yes, even our own Stangl pottery from Trenton.
These are probably not your grandmother’s antiques, but they could be just what you need to give some old things a chance to do what they were originally made to do – be hip, modern, contemporary and new all over again.
On the local scene, the annual Avalon Antique Show for the benefit of our local hospital will be held as usual on the Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend (May 28). Doors open at 10 a.m., and I’ll be there to appraise your things until 2 p.m.
This is the event that gets the season rolling. There will be about 25 fascinating antique dealers, plus a plant sale and a very yummy bake sale, all for a good cause. Hope to see you there.
Also, don’t miss my annual Memorial Day list of the “Top Antiques of the Season” in next week’s column, Wed., May 25, appearing earlier on-line.
Arthur Schwerdt, a certified appraiser, is the author of “The Antiques Story Book: Finding the Real Value of Old Things,” and co-owner of The August Farmhouse Antiques on Route 9 in Swainton. Send your comments, questions or appraisal requests to aschwerdt@cmcherald.com.