Harry Memmott
Harry Memmott (1921-1991) was an Australian ceramic pottery artist.
Early life[edit]
Harry Attridge Memmott was born in Brisbane, Queensland in 1921, the son of Harry Memmott, a bootmaker and his wife Amy Sandison.[1] He spent his childhood in Annerley.[2] His grandfather, J.T. Sandison, who had trained at Bendigo Pottery, owned a pottery works in Annerley and in addition to the kilns, they had a rich supply of local clay.[3][4] Sandison was known for his speed of throwing and large pots, with most of his work in the creation of pots for gardens.[3] Memmott studied art at the Brisbane Technical College with a growing circle of local artists. He married Estelle “Cootch” Powell in 1943,[3] and after serving in World War II in the army intelligence unit, he took up the offer of retraining which was generally made available to former servicemen.[5] He completed a Fine Art course at the East Sydney Technical College alongside John Rigby, Margaret Cilento and Margaret Olley.[6][3]
Career[edit]
Memmott, his wife “Cootch”, who would later take up pottery and twin sons returned to Brisbane in 1950 and he set up a business making silk screen prints and picture frames.[2] Sandison pottery was being run by Memmott's uncle, George Sandison and former industrial chemist, Mervyn Feeney.[7] Mass production of pots overseas closed most of the commercial Brisbane pottery firms in the early 1950s.[3] Memmott learnt to throw pots on a wheel at Sandisons under the guidance of George Sandison's partner, Mervin Feeney, alongside another artist and radio announcer, Milton Moon.[8][4][9][10] In the mid-1950s, Memmott took over a section of the works and produced studio pottery[11] and a range of souvenir wares for commercial markets, featuring Aboriginal designs and other works designed for the holiday souvenir market,[12] fired in an electric kiln.[3]
In the late 1950s, Memmott began a studio pottery school. He visited Japan in the late 1960s and moved to the Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, to take up a position at the Prahran Technical College.[2][13] His wife took over the studio pottery business.[14]
In 1970 Memmott published The Australian Pottery Book - a way with clay: the comprehensive guide to pottery. He returned to Brisbane in 1977, and continued to work as a potter until 1985. He died in 1991.[15]
Legacy[edit]
The Sandison Pottery site was sold and a housing estate known as Potter's Place was proposed for the area to honour its legacy.[16] Memmott's pieces are marked with 'Harry Memmott' on their base and are sought after by collectors and galleries.[17]
References[edit]
- ^ "Family Notices". Daily Standard (Brisbane, Qld. : 1912 - 1936). 14 August 1920. p. 2. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ a b c "Harry Memmott - Australian Pottery at bemboka". www.australianpotteryatbemboka.com.au. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f "Cootch Memmott interviewed by Barbara Blackman [sound recording]". Trove. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ a b Moon, Milton (2010). "A potter's pilgrimage" (PDF).
- ^ "MANY EX-SERVICE TRAINEES MAY ABANDON STUDY". Daily Telegraph (Sydney, NSW : 1931 - 1954). 26 June 1947. p. 7. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "EXHIBITION OF ART AT VARSITY COLLEGE". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 15 June 1948. p. 2. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ Cochrane, Grace. Creations in clay : objects of desire.
- ^ "Vale: Milton Moon". QAGOMA Blog. 25 September 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "Ceramics Today - Milton Moon". ceramicstoday.glazy.org. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "Happy potter, an honorary doctor" (PDF). Friends of the South Australian School of Art. April 2009.
- ^ Ransome, Alison (2009). "Ian Calder McKay was Here: A Legacy of Beauty in Pottery". Queensland Review. 16 (1): 71–94. doi:10.1017/S1321816600004979 – via Informit.
- ^ "Australiana: cashing in on kitsch". Australian Financial Review. 21 February 2004. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "LIFE STYLE PEOPLE Pottery show edna boling's NOTES AND QUOTES". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 4 April 1974. p. 16. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "* Cootch Memmott". Flickr. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "Death notices". The Age. 19 October 1991.
- ^ "Potters Place". Pitman Properties. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
- ^ "The Arts Centre Gold Coast — Culture Issue 5". Issuu. Retrieved 2 September 2020.