Susie Cooper

As a woman in an industry run by men, it was her ability to anticipate the mood of the day and understand market trends that enabled Susie Cooper to keep ahead of her competitors. She produced modern pots at affordable prices and provided customers who possessed exceptional taste, but little money, with well-designed, practical and attractive pottery. Cooper's pots became symbolic of the new domestic life enjoyed by the suburban middle classes. Her career spanned seven decades and a staggering four thousand patterns ranging from the jazz modern colours of the Art Deco period to the Pop Art of the swinging sixties. This centenary book outlines and discusses Susie Cooper's major achievements throughout her prolific career. It brings together the leading experts and authorities who reflect upon her life and work, as well as providing contextual contemporary evidence on the twentieth century ceramic industry as a whole. For the very first time known aspects of her life are brought together with the unknown, including new research material and information from her family. The focus of the book is on new information and original research to add to the understanding of one of our greatest ceramic designers. Essays in this book include: Women Designers in Context; Unknown Susie Cooper; The Susie Cooper Style; Royal Connections; Pottery Patronage; Susie Cooper and Wedgwood.