Ursula Mommens

No 20th Century Forum can be complete without a mention of the studio potter, Ursula Mommens, who was born in 1908 and lived until she was 101. If nothing else that makes her the British studio potter ,who lived longer than any other during the century, but Ursula was much more than that.

She was the great granddaughter of Charles Darwin and the great great granddaughter of Josiah Wedgwood, who began potting in 1922 and had her last solo exhibition at Contemporary Ceramics when she was 98 years old. She trained at the Royal College of Art under William Staite Murray in the late 1920s, after a recommendation from Charles Vyse, and ran Michael Cardew's pottery at Wenford Bridge for a time during the Second World War.

A retrospective exhibition of her work together with that of her second husband the sculptor, Norman Mommens, is currently being held at the pottery she start in 1951 in South Heighton near Newhaven in Sussex. This exhibition began last weekend and is open every Saturday and Sunday for the rest of May, as well as Spring Bank Holiday Monday, 30th May from 11am to 6pm each day.

The picture of Ursula below was taken during 2002 and I will add some images of her pots in due course.

As promised a few images of work.

The first is a pair of moulded Festival of Britain flatback figures made by Ursula and Norman when they first moved to the pottery at South Heighton.

A small stoneware jug by Ursula when in her nineties.

A porcelain posy bowl again when in her nineties - so it is really 21st century!

Ursula Mommens (nee Darwin - hence the UD mark) is one of my favourites too! The work is so well-made and she sells well too
These are ones I won't part with:

Ursula Mommens vase with ash glaze

I'm pretty sure i bought these two together ages ago. The glazes and brushwork are identical, even the iron oxidation spots.
Although the vase mark is a bit mashed up, and glazed over, I'd be confident lumping the two together.

My initial thought was of course Ursula Mommens, but it doen't look quite right. Any thoughts?

The plate is definitely Ursula ]Mommens. Have some with exactly the same mark.The blue decoration is exactly hers as well. But the glaze inclusion on the vase, not too sure.

Agreed. Ursula Mommens. I think the vase mark is also Mommens' DD type mark

Thanks PP. It doesn't quite match the marks in the books which always have
seriphs on the DD.

The glazes are identical but the camera has made the vase a bit yellow!

Definitely no seriphs.

I've had this for years, but only realised who made it today. Stoneware storage jar, brushwork decoration, height including the lid about 12cm.

A substantial Moon Jar which I was did not want to part with. But in downsizing, that is the bit of heartbreak one has to live with

I hadn't thought about it before but Ursula was a little ahead of her time, as Moon Jars feature in the repertoire of potters today when they never really did in her day.

Hi - This is an example of her work. Bought by accident by my wife!

Michael

A typical hand-painted jug by Ursula.

These small bowls with fish decoration were always popular..............


They were around 6 cm high and 12 cm diameter at the top and when Ursula had her first exhibition with me in 2000 the retail price was £18. They went up a little over the years to £25.

Today one sold at the Maak auction for £446.40, including commission. I am not sure why.

Dead Ringer for your bowl as well. Maak auctions does bring up some prices that you start questioning.. ??
This was a teapot in 2017 which went for a much smaller price than that!

Ursula made many of the small fish bowls in the last 20 years of her life (i.e. the time when I knew her). I did sell them in sets of six at one time.

A stoneware vase with wax resist decoration, which was an uncommon form of decoration for Ursula's work.

A large stoneware plate with iron brushwork decoration.

The stoneware speckled glaze (inside and out) striped jug stands around 7" tall and measures 3" diameter at the base, which is stamped with what looks like a D and an A but could be a P or a stylised B?

Pretty sure I've found it - Ursula Mommens?

It looks to me as if it from the late 1970s/early 1980s. The mark is a UD for Ursula Darwin (her maiden name) and she used a similar stamp throughout her career. Often on eBay you see "cowboys" saying that pieces by her are pre-War if they have that mark but that's no true.

Teabowl with apple tree ash glaze and incised decoration. Sold to another potter recently.