Spade form

Artist Hans Coper (English, born Germany, 1920 - 1981)

CultureEnglish

Dateca.1969

MediumStoneware with slip

DimensionsOverall: 18.5 × 12 × 6 cm (7 5/16 × 4 3/4 × 2 3/8 in.)

MarkingsImpressed HC in a circle

DescriptionThis spade vase is a signature form of Coper’s, first developed in 1968 for an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Coper is widely celebrated for his composite shapes of stacked geometrical elements, and this piece is an excellent example. The form references modernist sculpture, such as that by Brancusi or Henry Moore, while very much retaining the idiom of domestic pottery. Coper made the spade form in multiple sizes, the present one being among the smaller. This example is distinguished for its slightly speckled surface, a feature found only occasionally in his work.

Credit LineGift of Jane Corkin

Object numberG18.5.2

Classifications

Modern and Contemporary Ceramics

Sub-classification

English

Collections

Status

On view