“What I am aiming at in our showroom is the underlying principle of that illustration: that if you show people how contemporary design WORKS and how it all works TOGETHER then not only do you sell more pottery but you sell for others, more furniture, more paintings, more good wallpaper, more good glass. And provided one is quite content to make a reasonable living in work happily, it doesn’t matter a Ruskin fuck if you are not making money out of ALL of it“
Peter Draper to Nibs (Hubert) Dalwood) circa 1950-1
MILTON HEAD POTTERY
Milton Head Pottery Co. Ltd. 1950-1959 – The Old Pound House, Milton Street, Brixham.
(Research by Keith Poole and Pat Stroud)
The pottery was originally a farmhouse with the Milton Head Pottery building being one of the outbuildings. This pottery was started by 3 partners in 1950. They were Peter Draper the artist and designer, better known later for his writing for TV and films. Sidney Higgins whose family owned brickfields was responsible for the pottery kiln firing and Frank Middlebrook an ex-serviceman and the pottery thrower.
Initially the pottery made was all hand thrown and slip decorated, but later some was jollied or slip cast after the manager Patrick Stroud had mastered mould making, but the pottery so made remained slip decorated. A strong selling line at that time was in drinking mugs and tankards or steins as they called them. Mike Skipworth gained experience at the Milton Head Pottery after leaving University. It was at Milton Head that he learnt the wax resist technique that became much used at his Lotus Pottery.
There was in Brixham a shop of contemporary design called Oasis at 15 King Street, that sold ceramics made in association with the Milton Head pottery
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Peter Draper died in 2004. Patrick Stroud and Frank Middlebrook live locally.
David Greenham was an apprentice at the pottery and subsequently founded Well Street Pottery in Paignton. He was the last owner of Brixham Pottery
The Milton Head Pottery exhibition 2016 features works from private collections
Many thanks to Pat and Sean Stroud, Sarah King, Louise Deane, Emma Thomas
The idea for this exhibition came from my original concept of using my father’s work as inspiration for my own art; his legacy is my journey
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