Photo courtesy Phillips.
On December 11, Phillips sold a 71-piece single-owner collection of Lucie Rie’s mid-century pottery that had been assembled over a 20-year period. The sale, titled Moved by Beauty: Works by Lucie Rie from an Important Asian Collection, was managed by Benjamin Green, associate specialist and head of sale of the design department in New York City. It totaled $3.2 million, with all lots selling. Antiques and The Arts Weekly had an opportunity to chat with Green to discuss his background, as well as learn more about one of the Twentieth Century’s most important potters. Green also shared his insights into the current state of the market for high-quality studio pottery.
Can you tell our readers a little about your background?
I’m originally from Shreveport, La., and have been with Phillips for five and a half years. I attended the Parsons Institute in New York earning a master’s degree in the History of Design. That academic background set me up for my current role at Phillips. I had worked in the museum world but learned that the auction world was a perfect fit for me. I began as a cataloger, responsible for researching, writing about and physically cataloging each object in our sales. It was a great learning experience. In my current role, I oversee the logistics of our two major design auctions each year, and I work closely with clients to source and sell exceptional examples of Twentieth and Twenty-First Century design, including furniture, lighting, ceramics and glass. It’s an incredibly fast-paced environment, which allows me to engage with a subject that I love. I know that it would be nice to tell you that I grew up with antiques, or that my parents fostered my interest, but that’s not the case.
Who was Lucie Rie and why are her pots of such interest?
Lucie Rie, who died at the age of 93 in 1995, was one of Britain’s most celebrated potters having been named a Dame — one of Britain’s highest honors — by Queen Elizabeth, in 1991. Rie was born to a Jewish family in Vienna in 1902 and began creating Modernist pottery in the 1920s and 30s. She moved to London in 1938 to escape Hitler’s antisemitic persecutions; she was one of a number of outstanding European potters who did so. Many other professionally trained potters, such as Marguerite Wildenhain, emigrated to the United States at this time and would go on to illustrious careers in this country. Lucie Rie’s work is remarkable for its originality and technical mastery. Unlike many potters who drew from long-standing ceramic traditions, Rie’s creations stand out for their innovative forms and glazes. Her pots are marked by a purity of form that feels timeless and nearly perfect, while still showing the subtle traces of her hand. She is particularly celebrated for her exquisite glazes which she created herself, the minimalist forms — such as conical bowls and vases with fluted lips — and rigorous techniques. These characteristics were on full display in the collection we recently sold, which grossed over $3 million. I think that the enduring appeal of Lucie Rie’s ceramics lies in their beauty — there is truly nothing else like them.
What were some of the highlights of the collection?
Rie worked both with stoneware and porcelain and the highlight of the sale was a footed porcelain bowl, circa 1978. It was just over 3 inches tall and had a matte white glaze with concentric inlaid blue lines which were repeated inside and out. It sold for $422,910, more than five times its high estimate; that’s the second-highest price recorded for one of her works. Also exceeding our expectations was another footed bowl. This one, circa 1980, had a golden manganese glaze with turquoise bands and a terra-cotta well and foot. But you did not have to spend six figures to take home a wonderful example of her work. We had a circa 1976 vase, just under 13 inches tall, made of mixed clays with manganese speckles, which produced a pitted pink surface with turquoise and grey spirals beneath the glaze. It sold, also above the estimate, for $8,890.
Lucie Rie’s circa 1978 footed porcelain bowl brought the highest price of the sale, finishing at $442,910. Photo courtesy Phillips.
Can you give us an overview of the current state of the market for Mid-Century studio pottery?
When it comes to the most sought-after Twentieth Century ceramics — works by Lucie Rie, Hans Coper, Magdalene Odundo and Peter Voulkos — the market has been and remains exceptionally strong. For ceramics achieving six-figure prices at auction, the list is quite exclusive, limited to Rie, Coper, Odundo, large early works by Voulkos and only a few others. In 2017, we sold a large early work by Peter Voulkos for more than $1 million, which is still a record for his work. Of course, there are so many other mid-century ceramic artists whose work performs with varying levels of success, but the highest results have been reserved for these select few artists. We’ve consistently seen impressive results for these artists, and our sale last month — December 2024 — further confirmed the enduring strength of Lucie Rie’s market. Another example of the interest in the market, and Rie’s work in particular, might be the fact that 31 percent of the buyers in that December sale were new to us.
Do you have another sale scheduled that will include or focus on mid-century pottery?
All of our Design sales at Phillips, held in both New York and London, feature modern and contemporary pottery. Our London sales take place in April and November, while our New York sales are held in June and December, each offering a diverse selection of ceramics.
—Rick Russack
