Joan Van Patten, author of the Nippon Porcelain series and leading expert on the subject of Nippon porcelain was in the Granite State in October for a series of three lectures on the subject. The lectures took place at The Gallery at Knotty Pine, Gary Wallace's Auction Gallery, and Antiques At Mayfair. Well known N.H. antique appraiser, auctioneer, and author George Michael organized the series in conjunction with promotion from "the Gavel".
Michael introduced Van Patten as "the Guru" of Nippon in this country. With four books in her Collector's Encyclopedia of Nippon Porcelain series, and two books in The Collector's Encyclopedia of Noritake series, plus numerous articles on the subject, the title is well deserved. Ms. Van Patten also was co-founder, and first president of the International Nippon Collectors Club, and serves on its board of directors.
Van Patten started off by explaining exactly what Nippon is. Nippon is not a certain type of porcelain made by one maker. Nippon is an era. The Nippon period is from 1891-1921. In 1891 the U.S. required that the country of origin be stamped on pieces exported to this country. Accordingly, the Japanese started marking their wares "Nippon", which in Japanese means "Japan". In 1921 the U.S. decided that because "Nippon" was a Japanese word, and they wanted the stamp to be in English, from that point forward the word "Japan" was to used. Therefore, Nippon porcelain is any porcelain made in Japan during the 1891-1921 time frame which accounts for its great diversity.
Nippon porcelain was made for export not for domestic use within Japan. Many American companies such as Larkin, Jewel Tea Company and others gave these pieces as premiums to their customers. They were not expensive. The Japanese artists were so fast and paid so little that even after paying duty charges, the price of the pieces remained low.
Joan showed us a collection of salesman's aides consisting of beautiful hand painted pictures of the porcelain designs. It was actually cheaper to have the artist paint these samples and put them in a binder than to have a catalog printed. Today of course these sheets are highly sought by collectors, and usually sell for more than the Nippon.
Nippon porcelain was completely hand painted up to 1904. After that some continued to be hand painted, but other pieces were decorated with decals or by stencils. The pieces with decals can be identified by use of a magnify- ing glass which will allow you to view the little dots making up the decal.
The variety of styles and subject matter of these pieces is amazing. In addition to beautiful floral pieces, Nippon includes many varied subjects. For example, Egyptian designs consist- ing of scenery, hieroglyphs, and stylized Egyptian gods and goddesses; Dutch influence as shown by a wide array of pieces showing windmills, people in Dutch dress, pieces reminiscent of some of the Dutch old masters, and pieces similar to Gouda ware. Another popular subject that was fascinating to people, and therefore worthy of portrayal was the newfangled flying machine! Aerial flight was a very popular subject that was produced on all sorts of Nippon pieces. Other popular subject matter consisted of old touring cars, American Indians, dogs, and much more.
The Japanese observed what was popular in America, and imitated it. They were also influenced by other companies such as Wedgwood, Royal Bayreuth, R.S. Prussia, and Gouda wares.
Joan told us that when she started collecting Nippon as a young woman she began just because she liked the pieces, and they were inexpensive. When shopping for them, dealers and shopkeepers would look down on them as a collectible. As Joan got more interested she found that there was very little known about these wares, and she began to research her finds to learn more about her collection. She also photographed her pieces, and in the back of her mind the idea of a book was forming - a small one.
However, she saw in an ad that Collector Books was looking for a collection to photograph for a book on Nippon. She sent in her pictures with a letter saying she had done a lot of research, and if they wanted to use her collection she'd have to write the book!
"I can't believe the Moxie, I had!" Van Patten said .
However, after several phone conversations back and forth, and after talking to other knowledgeable people interested in doing the book, the editors settled on Van Patten. The next thing she knew she had a book contract. She recalled that she was rather scared because she had only planned a small book, and now she had to do a big hardcover book, but she said she worked very hard at it, and it turned out all right.
Now of course, Nippon is very collectible, and is no longer inexpen- sive. Shopkeepers no longer sneer when collectors come to their shops looking for Nippon.
In fact the Japanese themselves are taking an interest, and the prices for Nippon porcelain are much higher in Japan than in the states. The increased popularity of Nippon and the accom- panying rise in prices has unfortunately given birth to imitations and repro- ductions just like it has with other popular collectibles and antiques.
Joan Van Patten has a mission, and that is to educate would-be collectors and dealers about the reproductions flooding the marketplace.
The audience at her lecture was treated to not one but two separate displays of porcelain. One display had a sign inviting the audience to touch, and the other requested them to refrain from touching. The difference was that one display was new reproductions with fake marks, and the other items were the "real thing".
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Part two of this article, will continue with more about Van Patten's efforts to educate both collectors and dealers about Nippon and the reproductions flooding the marketplace and what you can do to protect yourself from reproductions. All this and more from Joan's seminar and an exclusive Gavel interview with Joan Van Patten and George Michael.
©1997 Unravel the Gavel