The School of Art
The School of Art was constructed between 1900 and 1924, with the Foundation Stone being laid in 1906 by W. Grant & Sons Builders.
It is a rectangular, two storey building, six rooms rooms wide by two rooms deep. After being under-used for years, the Burslem School of Art has been refurbished at a cost of £2.1m and offers several large, free art galleries.
The free Public Library is currently based in the School of Art, after the Venetian Gothic Wedgwood Institute closed for safety reasons early in 2009.
It is a rectangular, two storey building, six rooms rooms wide by two rooms deep. After being under-used for years, the Burslem School of Art has been refurbished at a cost of £2.1m and offers several large, free art galleries.
The free Public Library is currently based in the School of Art, after the Venetian Gothic Wedgwood Institute closed for safety reasons early in 2009.
I rather enjoyed this, from http://www.thepotteries.org/tour/048.htm
"This large, symmetrical, red brick and terracotta building in Queen Street, Burslem, is the School of Art, designed by A. R. Wood and built during 1905-7. The decorative terracotta embellishments that supplement the 107ft. frontage were contributed by Doultons. The cost of the building was about £6,000, with an extra £1,500 spent on furnishing the spacious studies. The site had previously been occupied by an old manufactory belonging to Wood and Baker, which, I think, was formerly the works of a much earlier pottery owned by Cork and Condliffe. It was donated by Thomas Hulme in 1904 for the sole purpose of erecting a much-needed art school.On Friday, February 9th, 1906, the foundation stone was laid by the Earl of Dartmouth, who used a special engraved trowel. The trowel was silver with an ivory handle; it had an inscription-the Burslem coat of arms, and the motto "Ready." Deposited beneath the stone was an earthenware jar containing copies of the "Sentinel," the "Staffordshire Advertiser," a copy of the clays programme, and several coins of the period. Accompanying the jar were several examples of Burslem-made earthenware pots and ceramic tiles produced by the leading manufacturers. The main contributors were Doultons, Maddocks, Malkins, Wood and Sons, Wades, the Marden Tile Company, and Messrs. Boote.
The origins of the school can be traced back to a meeting in 1853 when representatives of the Stoke and Hanley Schools of Design met in the Wesleyan Schoolroom, Burslem, to discuss the possibility of creating a central art school that could be attended by students from the Six Towns and Newcastle, but, like most good ideas, it did not materialise overnight. In fact, it took more than 50 years before Burslem finally had an art school of its own and over 100 years before all the local art schools in the city were to unite as Stoke College of Art. This status was short-lived, however, because, with the founding of the North Staffordshire Polytechnic in 1970, the College of Art became the Faculty of Art and Design within this new system of tertiary education. Today, the Burslem School is an important part of the Polytechnic, accommodating the painting section of the Fine Art Department."
Neville Malkin 5th Feb 1975
"This large, symmetrical, red brick and terracotta building in Queen Street, Burslem, is the School of Art, designed by A. R. Wood and built during 1905-7. The decorative terracotta embellishments that supplement the 107ft. frontage were contributed by Doultons. The cost of the building was about £6,000, with an extra £1,500 spent on furnishing the spacious studies. The site had previously been occupied by an old manufactory belonging to Wood and Baker, which, I think, was formerly the works of a much earlier pottery owned by Cork and Condliffe. It was donated by Thomas Hulme in 1904 for the sole purpose of erecting a much-needed art school.On Friday, February 9th, 1906, the foundation stone was laid by the Earl of Dartmouth, who used a special engraved trowel. The trowel was silver with an ivory handle; it had an inscription-the Burslem coat of arms, and the motto "Ready." Deposited beneath the stone was an earthenware jar containing copies of the "Sentinel," the "Staffordshire Advertiser," a copy of the clays programme, and several coins of the period. Accompanying the jar were several examples of Burslem-made earthenware pots and ceramic tiles produced by the leading manufacturers. The main contributors were Doultons, Maddocks, Malkins, Wood and Sons, Wades, the Marden Tile Company, and Messrs. Boote.
The origins of the school can be traced back to a meeting in 1853 when representatives of the Stoke and Hanley Schools of Design met in the Wesleyan Schoolroom, Burslem, to discuss the possibility of creating a central art school that could be attended by students from the Six Towns and Newcastle, but, like most good ideas, it did not materialise overnight. In fact, it took more than 50 years before Burslem finally had an art school of its own and over 100 years before all the local art schools in the city were to unite as Stoke College of Art. This status was short-lived, however, because, with the founding of the North Staffordshire Polytechnic in 1970, the College of Art became the Faculty of Art and Design within this new system of tertiary education. Today, the Burslem School is an important part of the Polytechnic, accommodating the painting section of the Fine Art Department."
Neville Malkin 5th Feb 1975
New stained glass Window in The School of Art in Burslem.
Burslem School of Art Alumni...
Here are one or two Burslem School of Art students you may have heard of...
And, if you haven't heard of any of the above, well, never mind...
- Arthur Berry artist and playwright, Berry also taught at his alma mater
- John Shelton painter and ceramic artist
- William Bowyer (artist)
- Clarice Cliff ceramic designer
- Susie Cooper ceramic designer
- Jessie Tait ceramic designer
- Charles Tomlinson poet and artist
- Sidney Tushingham etcher
And, if you haven't heard of any of the above, well, never mind...