Anton Lang

by **skipposal** March 27th 2013, 5:17 pm

This pot was a fiver in my local Antiques Centre but it took me a a few weeks to buy it as I couldn't decide if it was hand or factory made. In the end I did and was rather glad I had. It took a while to decipher the signature but eventually I realised I had rather an interesting piece. It is wheelthrown earthenware with a speckled yellow slip under a clear glaze and green-coloured sprigged decoration. Clear glaze inside. 9.3cm (height).

Anton Lang Id182_10

It turns out that Anton Lang (1875-1938) lived and worked in Oberammergau in Bavaria. In his day he was famous both as a potter and as the actor who played Christ in the Oberammergau Passion Play in 1900, 1910 and 1922. I found this postcard of him online working in his potter's studio and he certainly looks pretty charistmatic

Anton Lang Anton_10

He visited the USA 1923-4 and threw pots at Rookwood Pottery and also appeared on the cover of the Times Magazine in December 1923. He was anti-Nazi, running into trouble when he returned because he refused to make changes to the Passion Play script to make it more 'on message'. Where he died, Nazi sympathisers refused to go to his funeral. Quite a man! Lots more about him on Wikipedia
Anton Lang wiki page

by **styleinvasion** March 31st 2013, 10:17 am

by **skipposal** March 31st 2013, 10:40 am

Gorgeous - didn't realise he did slip-trailed stuff too. Very distinctive gritty clay isn't it?

by **styleinvasion** March 31st 2013, 7:59 pm

yes it is quite gritty....
not every vase marked anton lang was produced by himself.
after anton lang died his son karl lang (1903 – 1990) carried forward with the anton lang workshop.
in 1975 after karl lang retired his daughter barbara lampe took over the workshop together with her husband ulli lampe.
she renamed it in 1995 to barbara lampe töpferei.
http://www.toepferei-lampe.de/
here a film about the workshop....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2dGdsddpko&feature=gv
unfortunately not in english

by **skipposal** March 31st 2013, 8:21 pm

Good thing I learned German at a Goethe Institut (though it was 30 years ago!!)

by **skipposal** March 31st 2013, 8:43 pm

That film was just ACE! Thanks for sharing. Didn't catch it all but just watching them working, especially the slip trailing and kiln firing was enough