Ordinary Luster Vase with Gold Dragon, height 10.8cm, Ordinary Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1915.
Perhaps one of the most valuable series from the Wedgwood manufactory is considered among collectors to be the Fairyland Luster series (Fairytale Glitter, or Fairytale Chandelier). Introduced in 1915, the Fairyland Luster series became Wedgwood’s most whimsical and diverse line.
Fairyland Luster features bright underglaze painted colors, industrial chandeliers and fantasy creatures and subjects – elves and fairies in fairy-tale landscapes.
Ordinary Luster vase with fairy bird painted in gold, Ordinary Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.Gold butterfly bowl, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.
An innovative period in the history of the manufactory began in 1909, when the eccentric artist Daisy Makeig-Jones entered the Wedgwood factory as an apprentice master, and just two years later, thanks to her talent, she became an artist. She was able to persuade owner Cecil Wedgwood to move away from Wedgwood’s iconic neoclassical motifs of the 18th and 19th centuries and began developing her amazing designs for tableware and home furnishings as early as 1911.
Even before launching the Fairyland Luster line, Daisy began experimenting with chandeliers and fairy-tale creatures in her first “Oriental Dragon” design in 1913. The basis of the composition was sparkling fish, hummingbirds, and an abundance of fruit.
Bowl painted with Forest Bridge and Garden of Eden, diameter 18.5cm, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1920.
Released a year after the end of the First World War, the vibrant Fairyland Luster literally saved Wedgwood from bankruptcy. After the gray sorrows and horrors of war, people again wanted bright and joyful colors.
The products produced were divided into three main categories, most of which were bowls, jars and vases of various shapes and sizes (about 32 different designs and paintings), plates and tablets (about 12 designs of both). The names of the designs reflected the subjects of the paintings on them, for example, “Thumbelina” or “Willow Fairies.”
‘Ghostly Wood’ lidded vase featuring Roc and Demon Tree, Fairyland Sunset Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.
The epochal popularity of the gentle fairies and whimsical Art Nouveau creatures in Fairyland Luster ended immediately after the stock market crash of 1929, which coincided with the end of the Art Nouveau era and the beginning of the more austere Art Deco era. The manufactory tried to restart the legendary series several times, without Daisy’s participation, but this did not create the same excitement.
Vase with lid Ghostly Wood (Ghostly Forest, Fairyland Sunset Luster, design Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.Jeweled Tree vase, 23 cm high, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.Bowl painted with Forest Bridge, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1920.‘Bubbles’ lidded vase, Fairyland Luster, design by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.Bubbles Vase, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.Design Bubbles by Daisy Makeig Jones.Silk panel by 19th century Japanese artist Kano Hagai.‘Candlemas’ vase, height 21cm, Fairyland Luster, design by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.Candlemas vase, height 19 cm, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1925.Demons on the Bridge vase, height 11.2 cm, Fairyland Flame Luster, design Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood.The fantastic design of Demons on the Bridge and the Treehouse is one of the most popular stories in the series.Vase with the subjects Demons on the Bridge and Tree of te Serpent, height 29.5 cm, Fairyland Flame Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1930.Pair of ‘Firbolgs IV’ vases, height 24cm, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1920.Pair of ‘Column’ vases, 30cm high, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, Wedgwood, circa 1925.Fairyland Hill and Bird’s Nest Robbers vase with lid, 18.5 cm high, Fairyland Flame Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, 1924.Galloping Elves bowl, 14cm diameter, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, 1924.Large Temple of the Rock lid vase, h 51.5cm, Fairyland Luster, design by Daisy Makeig Jones, 1925.Butterfly Women Vase, 20 cm high, Fairyland Luster, designed by Daisy Makeig Jones, 1925.Daisy Makeig Jones (1881 1945).
