Stig Lindberg's influence on other designers

Sorry Pip, no I don't. The pieces I handled where simply marked "Italy" or "made in Italy". Most of the listings are vague about the attribution and rarely show a photograph of the base. The "Spectrum Leaf" lamps having been turning up now for a couple of years, but worryingly there seems to be a few new pieces on the scene, a large leaf bowl and a lidded gourd which is on Ebay and looks like it was painted by a 2 year old! I will research the possible Bitossi link and post any findings.

There is no link other than the base markings which, as I explained earlier, were used by *many* Italian potteries at the time. If these turn out to be Bitossi production (which they won't) I'll eat one.

I'm sticking with my original theory - these are not by Bitossi, they were produced somewhere at another as yet unknown pottery in Italy, the decoration is nothing to do with Stig Lindberg but inspired by (or copied) from his designs.

The Bitossi and Stig Lindberg stories have grown from one person originally making the tenuous connection in their head, putting it in a listing on eBay and VOILA - the myth began and has perpetuated itself.

Hi Geoff

Thanks very much for the reply. I think the Bitossi attribution has come from Bitossi being a supplier for Raymor. As these items are Italian and (at least some of them) made for Raymor, there is the assumption that they must be Bitossi. Which, as Pip says, is a leap too far. But my main question was simply to find out the truth as to if there was any connection between Stig Lindberg and these items.

Regardless of the Italian producer, it seems curious though that if Gustavsberg/Lindberg were very anti copyright infringement, that a reputable company like Raymor would have not only brought copies, but had their name put on them. Maybe it was a calculated risk or there is enough difference to avoid copyright infringement.

Hi Kurt,
Stig Lindberg fought to be 'classified' as an artist and therefore to claim copyright for his designs, but he wasn't successful and there were lots of designers influenced by his work and some plagiarists who just made cheap copies. There are some licensed copies out there.... when the retrospective exhibition was on in Stockholm they re issued some Bersa pieces and some of his fabric designs. I think that was OK because the patterns were always printed and not hand painted, I am less sure about the McDonalds Bersa paper coffee cups that were used (image att.) although they were a bit of fun, but personally I draw the line at the re release coffee cups with "falling leaves' pattern. This pattern was always supposed to be hand painted and the beauty is in the choice of palette, the subtle changes in size and perspective to enhance the organic shape of the piece. The modern mugs are flat and stiff and the shape of the mug is as far from organic as one can get. In the end it is a personal choice.
To answer your original post.... yes I also collect Poole Freeform and often display them side by side with SL pieces, they compliment each other really well. I will post a photo!

Hi
I attended both exhoihibtions both at the Design Museum and at the Gustavberg fctory in Stockholm-wonderful exhibitions

Just another contribution. John Clappison went over to Stockholm in the early sixties I think he said and I think he met Lindberg. He told me that it was such a great experince to go to Sweden and see the work of these influential designers-you can still buy seconds at the factory but as I was travelling for a month through Europe I couldnt risk the weight!!!!

Thanks Andy, great to know that JC met Stig Lindberg and certainly makes sense.
I also collect John Clappison pieces and they sit very happily with the Scandinavian designers. Another piece of the jig-saw!

Just trawling through some of my old pictures and came across this, another Italian piece clearly influenced by Lindberg

Or maybe old stig was influenced by the Italians , ............., you never know .

this is a subject that has always intrigued me,I have traced lots of English pottery design back to Stig but who influenced him?

....well, he was originally employed in Gustavsberg by Wilhelm Kage, who had originally trained as a painter and studied with Henri Matisse, so there is a definite influence that was passed on. He was always fascinated by Italy and Italian artists and that influence is definitely present in some of his more figurative work, (have a look at some of the faces he painted in Karneval series).
I think his throwing and glazes are definitely influenced by Kage and Carl Harry Stalhane, the organic shapes and patterns are a trend that was really taking off around the mid forties and there was a lot of cross contamination with his contemporaries such as Gunnar Nylund but also form other countries such as the work of Eva Zeisel. The work coming through Midwinter in the 50s from Terence Conran and Jessie Tait was (I, think) most heavily influenced by Stig.

interesting,I can definately see similarities when I look at my Gunnar Nylund and Carl Harry Stalhane vases,thanks a lot