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W S George

Submitted by nostalgiaholic on Fri, 09/02/2011 - 4:54pm

W S George

W. S. George. Ranchero Cloudburst Sunlight Green. snack set

I found four of these snack sets at a thrift this morning. I don't recall ever seeing a snack set in this line. They are not marked.

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Average: 5 (3 votes)

Re: W S George

Submitted by mpratt on Fri, 09/02/2011 - 5:48pm.

That's really sweet. Nice find.

Re: W S George

Submitted by SteveMinne on Fri, 09/02/2011 - 8:45pm.

Have always thought of this line as art deco despite the glazing from a later era. Did Ranchero by chance come out in the 1930s?

Re: W S George

Submitted by subversivegrrl on Sat, 09/03/2011 - 12:27am.

Mark Gonzales' Ohio River Pottery site says late '30s-50s.

Re: W S George

Submitted by SteveMinne on Sat, 09/03/2011 - 1:41am.

Then yes. Relieved. Thanks.

Re: W S George

Submitted by mpratt on Sat, 09/03/2011 - 6:36am.

Even though the Ranchero shape was used by Cavitt-Shaw (W. S. George) on Neptune in 1938, Cloudburst wasn't introduced until 1950. The shape was designed by Simon Slobodkin who I personally consider to be the father of production mid-century modern American dinnerware styling. The industry regarded him as the first person to reintroduce the coupe shape in production ware. Now whether that is true or not, I've not been able to confirm that.

But what is true about the Ranchero shape is that it is based on very simple geometries with absolutely no gimmicks. There is a simplicity and honesty of shape that clearly sets it apart from Art Deco forms. It's a shape basically created from circles and ovals. Ranchero was so successful, that it was used over and over again in many, many different patterns.

I know that Eva Zeisel has said that he was one of the first persons to give her design work when she arrived in the states.

If anyone is a descendent of or knew Simon Slobodkin, I would love to hear from them.

Re: W S George

Submitted by SteveMinne on Sat, 09/03/2011 - 11:29am.

I have three teapots from this line. All are light colors with no speckles or decals. I collected them to fit in my pre-war teapot collection. I presume these forms are the earliest ones. I even remeber the exact store in Arlington Heights, Illinois where I made the first purchase.

When time allows I'll post a pic here. Hopefully this holiday weekend.

Re: W S George

Submitted by mpratt on Sat, 09/03/2011 - 12:26pm.

There were some with lines/ridges around the pot. I do have extensive information on some early modern W. S. George in my files. I think the earliest date I have for Ranchero is 1938 but maybe that was just for Navajo on the Ranchero shape. I'll check. I do have this teapot and coffepot in plain undecorated ivory/cream without speckles.

Re: W S George

Submitted by SteveMinne on Sat, 09/03/2011 - 1:02pm.

Precisely! My WS George teapots are banded at the base and lid hence the deco influence.

Re: W S George

Submitted by mpratt on Sun, 09/04/2011 - 7:38am.

Yes, but I'm not convinced they came first (this is something I need to go back to the trades and determine). I have the Georgex ad and the typeface is also deco. Unfortunately I didn't get a date with the full-page ad.

The earliest introduction of the Ranchero shape that I know of at the moment is December 1937 in the trades. Cavitt-Shaw Potters (East Palestine, Ohio) came into existence around 1935, the brainchild of W. Campell George (president of W. S. George Pottery Company) and S. H. Slobodkin. The concept was to create "high-class, strictly all-American" dinnerware. (The company names Cavitt and Shaw were taken from the ancestry of the George family.) The Cavitt-Shaw dinnerware was produced in the W. S. George factory and distributed by Cavitt-Shaw. C-S probably could be considered a division of WSG.

And as the story goes, the first line of dinnerware was Vesta and followed by Coquette (the shape was based on the underside curve of a robin). The latest and most successful shape in the late 1930s was Ranchero.

Now in the descriptions and photos of the earliest trade summaries I don't see the lines on the teapot. "As one admires the simple, classic charm of the "ranchero", he observes the clean cut, unadorned lines...the inspiration for this beautiful dinnerware came from the drawing of two convex lines..."

The ivory glaze was referred to as Golden Glaze Ranchero and some of the earliest patterns were Indian themes. The Golden Glaze was designed to capture the effect of the Chinese glazes from the K'ang Hsi period (1662-1772).

Now the Georgex ad is from the W. S. George company, but the trades introduced Ranchero from Cavitt-Shaw Potters.

One of my favorite patterns on Ranchero was Navajo, introduced by Cavitt-Shaw in 1938. The same pattern could be seen on Ranchero in 1955 trade ads as well, by W. S. George. It is clear that the Ranchero shape had a lifespan similar to American Modern by Steubenville.

Cavitt-Shaw's Company Purpose

Submitted by mpratt on Mon, 09/05/2011 - 7:39pm.

I found a page article about Cavitt-Shaw Potters from the January 1936 issue of The Pottery, Glass & Brass Salesman.

According to this article, ware is "typically and distinctly American." Not only the merchandising, but the art direction was under the control of S. H. Slobodkin. Manufacture occurs in the former No. 4 George plant. This account calls Cavitt-Shaw a "distinct corporation."

The company has a fourfold purpose in form and decoration that it sees as characteristically American: 1) a sense of pride in direct communication, 2 & 3) a sense of loathing of "redundancy" and the obvious, 4) a sense of lightness and less formality.

Never more clearly has a manufacturer stated the tenets of honesty, simplicity, and innovation in American mid-century modern--and in January 1936 to boot!

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W S George