Tall bird

Art Historical Context

Step into the whimsical world of late Victorian ceramics with *Tall Bird* (1896), a striking stoneware sculpture crafted by the British firm R. W. Martin and Brothers in Southall, London. Standing an impressive 20¼ inches tall on its socle, this piece combines durable stoneware—fired at high temperatures for a non-porous, robust body—with wooden elements, creating a hybrid form that bridges pottery and sculpture. The artwork's two-part construction (body and detachable head, weighing 11 and 4 pounds respectively) suggests functionality, perhaps as a decorative vessel or tobacco jar, common in the era's decorative arts. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts, *Tall Bird* exemplifies the Martin brothers' innovative approach to ceramics during the 1890s Arts and Crafts-influenced period. Stoneware's earthy, textured glaze and sculptural potential allowed for bold, naturalistic forms like this elongated avian figure, evoking both humor and elegance. Donated in 2013 from the Robert A. Ellison Jr. Collection, it highlights the firm's reputation for fantastical pottery that blended utility with artistic expression, captivating collectors with its lifelike presence and technical mastery. (198 words)

About the Artist

R. W. Martin and Brothers · 1873–1915

R. W. Martin and Brothers, often known simply as the Martin Brothers pottery, was a pioneering British studio founded in 1873 by sculptor Robert Wallace Martin (1843–1923) in Fulham, London, alongside his brothers Charles Douglas Martin (1846–1910), Walter Fraser Martin (1857–1912), and Edwin Bruce Martin (1860–1915). The firm relocated to a former soap factory on Havelock Road in Southall, Middle...