This year marks the centenary of the birth of Susan Williams-Ellis (1918-2007), the founder of Portmeirion, with the company paying homage to Susan with a dedicated display at London’s V&A Museum.
The free display, which is entitled Portmeirion: Pottery Trendsetter, will open on October 31, 2018 and run for nine months until July 28, 2019. It will follow Susan’s journey and her work throughout the decades.
On display will be many of Susan’s iconic designs, including her most famous 1972 design, Botanic Garden, which remains one of the company’s best selling and most loved patterns. Other classic designs include Totem and Magic City.
Susan was one of Britain’s most celebrated designers in the second half of the 20thcentury. Her designs were at the forefront of contemporary style and continue to inspire the ceramics industry today.
Portmeirion’s creative director Julian Teed remembers working with Susan: “It was an absolute honour to have worked with her for so many years, witnessing first-hand her wonderfully creative mind at work. Susan’s vision was to create affordable and beautiful products for the home to be cherished for years to come, and she succeeded greatly at achieving this.”
Adds Julian: “The factory and village were an extension of Susan’s family. She never switched off. On many occasions, Susan could be found in the factory at night taking cups of coffee to those on the night shift. She surrounded herself by the things she loved most in life – design, her pets, flowers, and all the people who worked with her in Stoke-on-Trent.”
Top: Portmeirion’s iconic Botanic Garden designed by Susan Williams-Ellis in 1972.
