A rare pair of K’ang Hsi period blue and white reticulated salts sported sold tags shortly after preview opened from the booth of Philip Suval, Fredericksburg, Va. The rare mid-Eighteenth Century “tea production†plate is the 12th from a series of 24.

“Sold Out †Thank You, New York.”

Amid trepidations, market woes, reports of cautious buying and the overall chilling news surrounding the US economic climate, one exhibitor at the Caskey-Lees-produced Ceramics Fair was bucking the trends, perhaps feeling as if he was dancing on Broadway. One of a host of dealers to report healthy sales from the fair, contemporary potter Paul Katrich occupied the cat-bird seat moments after the gala preview party opened to the public as he applied red dots to every single pot on display in his booth. The dealer then turned his attentions to creating a “sold out” sign to thank his public and to promote his wares for next year’s show.

Closing on January 25, after a five-day run, management summed up The New York Ceramics Fair as successful. And while not all of the 36 dealers exhibiting at the fair were lacing up their dancing shoes, the vast majority were smiling as an appreciative crowd made its way through the National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, where the fair takes place.

Successful is an interpretive word these days. “Almost without exception exhibitors reported the fair generated sales for them that were better than expected,” claimed Caskey-Lees in a prepared release, “and on margin, international exhibitors benefited from the strengthening dollar, which, in effect created 25″5 percent discounts from euro and pound sterling prices of a few months ago.”

Pottery designed by William De Morgan was featured at Sylvia Powell Decorative Arts, London. The dealer called her De Morgan collection the “largest outside of a museum†and stated that the designer was at “the top of the tree of the English Arts and Crafts Movement.†Included among the assortment was an impressive “Galleon Charger†from 1901 with a central decorated panel depicting three putti in a galleon.

“There are only two major ceramics shows in the world,” cooed one dealer, “and this is the better of the two.” This specialized fair has found a niche and is highly regarded by a serious group of collectors, museum curators and the buying public.

Indeed, for ceramic enthusiasts, this event is a must-see. The range of materials is broad, yet focused. No offense, but Roseville and McCoy collectors will find themselves out of place. The fare at this fair ranges from crude forms from the early centuries †some even dating to BC †to the classical Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Export wares from China, England and France; straight through to the contemporary potteries that varied from exquisitely created fruit and floriforms to re-creations of traditional antique forms newly molded with a twist of political sarcasm.

Museum trade was surprisingly active, with representation including the Corning Museum of Glass, which made a grand appearance during Americana Week with objects from its collection featured across town at the Winter Antiques Show’s special loan exhibit. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Colonial Williamsburg, Winterthur, Wadsworth Atheneum, Mount Vernon, Yale University Art Gallery and the Mint Museum were also reported to have been represented the fair.

The crowds were somewhat smaller this year than dealers had become accustomed to in the past, with the preview crowd down from almost 700 last year to just under 500 this year. Higher than normal crowds over the weekend pushed attendance figures in a positive direction, however, with management reporting the crowd to be within three percent of last year’s numbers.

Michelle Erickson, Yorktown, Va., studies antique objects and then reproduces them, adding her own whimsical touches. In the case of the reproduced Moravian squirrel-form redware bottles, “Second Amendment Squirrel†is depicted with a machine gun in its paws, while “Nut Squirrel†chews on the wrong end of an acorn and “Skull Squirrel†nibbles on a human cranium.

A milestone, the tenth year of The New York Ceramics Fair celebrated in style with a gala opening and a superb loan exhibit, “A Hidden Treasure: Chinese Export Porcelain from The Reeves Collection at Washington and Lee University.” A robust assortment of programs and lectures also flavored the show, with eight different speakers illuminating a variety of topics. Don Carpentier started on opening day with a lecture titled “Early British Pots and the Remarkable Tools Used To Make Them.” During a year that may well be noted for the decline of Wedgwood, Miranda Goodby spoke about “Josiah Wedgwood’s Early Years.” Robert Hunter presented “New Discoveries in Southern Earthenware” and Ronald W. Fuchs II discussed the Reeves Collection loan exhibit.

“It is about design,” proclaimed Caskey-Lees publicist Walt Borton in the fair’s catalog. “No matter how arcane the history of an object, no matter how technical mastery summoned to create it, no matter the perfection of the materials from which it is formed, no matter the significance of the function for which it is crafted. In the end, design will determine its importance, its impact, its preservation, and ultimately its value.”

His observations rang true from the design aspect, and even more so when all of the factors were rolled into a single object.

“Rare,” “unique,” “superbly crafted” and numerous other superlatives are tossed around at the fair as if they were candy. And often times they are, sweetening the pots, chargers and other wares displayed.

The 2009 New York Ceramics Fair marked the retirement from the show circuit of widely admired dealer Peter Warren of Maria and Peter Warren Antiques Inc, Wilton, Conn. A specialist in Eighteenth Century English creamware, Warren displayed an exceptional Eighteenth Century polychrome decorated creamware platter.

“Debatably, I am the last studio potter,” proclaimed Dearborn, Mich., exhibitor Paul Katrich, who specializes in creating unique glazes for his pottery. “People in the antiques trade taught me what I know,” commented the dealer, “and these types of iridescent luster glazes have not been seen since the Nineteenth Century.” Adding that antiques collectors are his major clients, one such Midwestern collector snapped up every piece available in the booth minutes after preview had opened on Tuesday evening.

American political themes were especially popular this year as America prepared to enter the month of February and readied itself to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Great Emancipator, Abraham Lincoln, and the birth date of George Washington as well.

Bill and Teresa Kurau were on hand with a rare platter from the “first order” of Lincoln White House French porcelain dinnerware. With a rare plum color border specially ordered by First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln, the platter was decorated with the presidential seal in the center. Also displayed was a “Success To The American Navy” transfer pitcher that the dealer remarked was one of three known examples. “This one is particularly rare,” commented Bill Kurau, “because of the rust-colored transfer, as opposed to the usual black” that is seen on the majority of the wares.

Diana and Gary Stradling were holding court in one of the outer display areas on the fourth floor of the museum, and the New York City couple featured wares that could have easily been incorporated into any institution’s display cases with pride. A rare Parian ware bust of Lincoln was but one of the many standouts from their display. A rare green-glazed redware squirrel bottle attributed to Nineteenth Century Moravian potter Rudolf Christ was also featured in the booth, and although it was not political in nature, it provided a backdrop for political statements made by contemporary potter Michelle Erickson.

Simon Westman, London, sold his most important piece, a large creamware owl, transacted in “the substantial five figures.†One of “a half dozen known,†the dealer termed it “one of the best pieces of pottery at the fair, 

Based in Yorktown, Va., Erickson studies, sometimes for months on end, the objects, thematic subjects and the technical aspects used in creating the varied forms, and then reproduces them while adding her own whimsical touches. In the case of the Moravian squirrel-form redware bottles, the potter studied the forms, made a model from which a mold was cast and then produced the bottle with additional elements. “Second Amendment Squirrel” is depicted with a machine gun in its paws, while “Nut Squirrel” chews on the wrong end of an acorn and “Skull Squirrel” nibbles on a human cranium.

“I have been working in clay for 20 years and have concentrated on Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century English ceramic technology †a period in which English pottery rose to the height of the world ceramic industry,” states Erickson on her website. “The evolution of these rich and varied ceramic techniques permeates my works as a contemporary ceramic artist and provides a unique glimpse into the past through the present. The juxtaposition of these techniques outside a framework of traditionalism enables me to explore the irony in the making of ceramic objects in an age where they are entirely irrelevant.”

Mimicking other forms seen on the floor, Erickson reinterpreted a Fecundity platter’s harmonious scenes of life, replacing maternal imagery with the presidential seal with oil fields in the background, skulls replacing the faces of Comedy and Tragedy, and Middle Eastern symbols for the Red Cross in the wells surrounding the platter. Erickson commented that her work is represented in numerous museums, including, among others, the New-York Historical Society, Peabody Essex and the Milwaukee Art Museum.

Simon Westman said his fair was about even with last year’s sales, but primarily because he sold his most important piece, a large creamware owl, transacted in “the substantial five figures.” The London-based dealer commented that his perched owl was one of “a half dozen known” and was “in fantastic condition with no restoration. It is one of the best pieces of pottery at the fair,” commented Westman. Another standout from his selection was a large tin glazed earthenware molded platter depicting Fecundity. Unlike the contemporary version displayed by Erickson, this mid-Seventeenth Century example was traditionally decorated with scenes of life.

David and Bill Kurau with two rare items from their stand with political significance, a rare “Success to The American Navy†Liverpool pitcher with rust transfer and a platter from the Lincolns’ White House china service. William and Teresa Kurau, Lampeter, Penn.

“Simply Perfect&⁓tunning Pottery” is the motto of London-based Sylvia Powell, whose pottery forms varied in age and style. Works by Picasso were offered, such as a “Hand on Fish” plate and a “Smiling” face tile, both 1953, as were pieces by Martin Brothers, such as the “New Year’s” bird jar dated 1-1-85. “It is a great bird,” she said of the rare form, “he has a little attitude, a gleam in his eye.”

Highlighting the booth, however, was a exceptional selection of pottery designed by William De Morgan, a rarity in itself, although Powell offered more than 30 pieces. The dealer called her De Morgan collection the “largest outside of a museum” and stated that the designer was at “the top of the tree of the English Arts and Crafts Movement.” Included among the assortment was an impressive “Galleon Charger” from 1901 with a central decorated panel depicting three putti in a galleon. The borders decorated in the Persian style, for which the designer was known, is unique and from a series that was fired at the Cantagalli factory in Florence. Also known for his tiles, a tile panel in the original copper frame was on display, and the dealer quickly pointed out a period photograph showing the panel on the wall of the Byrdcliffe Colony in New York at the turn of the century.

Staffordshire figures were plentiful throughout the show and among the standouts was a pair of squirrels in the booth of Garden City, N.Y., dealer Elinor Penna. “I’ve never had a pair before,” said the specialist of the rare pair, “and you just don’t see them when the colors are right.” Another rarity in Staffordshire is the horse form of which Penna displayed a mare and colt. “Although the same mold was used and the figures are the same, most often they are decorated in more lively colors, as zebras,” she said.

The promoters cited English Staffordshire specialist John Howard, of Woodstock, Oxfordshire, as posting the strongest show he has experienced as a ten-year exhibitor. Paul Vandekar of Earle Vandekar of Knightsbridge, Inc, New York City, reported a solid fair and Leo Kaplan Ltd, New York City, found sales stronger than the holiday season, selling primarily to regular clients.

New York City dealer Leo Kaplan shows off a rare plique-a-jour glass and enamel on silver Art Nouveau vase, one of only a few known examples by Norwegian designer Gustav Gaudernack.

“It is just about as large as they get,” said Manhattan dealer Paul Vandekar of a Liverpool jug prominently displayed in his booth. Decorated with a map of the North American continent with laurel leaves and the Liberty Cap above, it also was decorated with a Washington crowned by Liberty transfer on the opposite side.

Garry Atkins, London, said that while he sold primarily to current clients, for him, sales were about what he had hoped for. While Atkins did sell in the $18,000 to $20,000 range, most of his sales were in at $1,000 to $3,000 prices, a report echoed across the fair’s floor, according to management.

Woodbury, Conn., dealer Paul Winsor was also among a surprising number of exhibitors reporting that they saw and sold to new clients in addition to collectors with whom they have worked for years.

The 2009 New York Ceramics Fair marked the retirement from the show circuit of widely admired dealer Peter Warren of Maria and Peter Warren Antiques Inc, Wilton, Conn. A specialist in Eighteenth Century English creamware, Warren displayed an exceptional three-tier Leeds centerpiece with shell-form tiers and a figure of “Plenty” at the top. Another highlight from the selection was a Staffordshire creamware coffee pot with vibrant polychromed panels depicting a rooster and floral motifs.

Twenty-three years ago, Warren shifted his attention to the antiques business full time after a 35-year career with PepsiCo International, where he rose to the rank of chief executive officer. While he will no longer participate on the show circuit and his pleasant and gentlemanly air will be missed, Warren assured faithful clients, friends all, that his Wilton shop will continue to do business.

Arts of Pacific Asia will be the next Caskey-Lees promoted event in New York City. For further information, www.caskeylees.com or 310-455-2886.