‘Alien’ Pottery

Alien pottery pot

Beige with red accents. Accession number O1199.

Alien pottery with two handles

Beige with black medallion and base. Accession number O1019.

Alien pottery bowl

Red with black medallion and base. Accession number O1275.

This style is unofficially called ‘alien’ by collectors and dealers due to its departure from other Art Deco styles of early twentieth-century Czechoslovakia. Art Deco is a decorative style for art, jewelry, pottery, furniture, and architecture. It is considered a response to Art Nouveau, another decorative style based on a naturalistic approach known by flowing lines and floral motifs. Art Deco can use elements of Art Nouveau, but it is more defined by geometric, fragmented patterns. It earned its name from the 1925 International Exhibit of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts, held in Paris.

While these ‘alien’ pieces, according to their marks, were made in the 1920’s and 1930’s along with other Art Deco ceramics, they are cleaner, simplified, and less colorful. They typically have marble veining or craquelure, and decorations are often limited to a raised monochrome medallion. The color usually exists in the medallion or in the marbling, though some pieces will have one or two bold colors in their glaze. These pieces seem to reflect a sharp departure from the highly decorative and colorful aesthetics of the Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles--a rebellion within a rebellion.