William Moorcroft (1872–1945), the founder of the celebrated British art-pottery company that shares his last name, was both an aesthete and a technical innovator. Along with William de Morgan, he is regarded as one of the greatest ceramists of the Arts and Crafts movement, yet Moorcroft’s singular style is heavily inflected with the lush naturalism of the Art Nouveau school of art and design.
The son of a decorative pottery painter, Moorcroft was born in Staffordshire, the center of English ceramics-making, studied at the Wedgwood Institute and in 1897 joined the local pottery manufacturer James Macintyre & Co. as a designer. After a year, he was put in charge of the company’s art-pottery studio, and there he developed a new style of wares named “Florian,” made with a technique called tube-lining, or slip-trailing. In this method, decorative motifs are outlined with a thin, raised border produced by piping a thread of clay onto the body of a vessel — much like squeezing toothpaste from a tube.
Moorcroft, who took the unusual step of signing his ceramics, would go on to win numerous international awards. In 1913, backed by the London department store Liberty & Co., he left Macintyre to open his own workshop. Queen Mary, wife of King George V, gave Moorcroft her Royal Warrant in 1928. Shortly before he died in 1945, his son, Walter Moorcroft (1917–2002), took over as head of the firm. The pottery company is still in business in Staffordshire, with a design department headed by Rachel Bishop.
William Moorcroft’s ceramics are noted for their colorful, ebullient (and often slightly surreal) decorations depicting stylized natural forms — flowers, toadstools, fruit (pomegranate is a favorite among collectors), insects and landscapes. Most Moorcroft wares are finished with a glossy overglaze. Blue-and-white and pastel shades were generally used as underglazes on early Moorcroft pieces, and he later developed a rich, ruddy background glaze he called “flambé.”
Moorcroft art pottery has a rich, warm and inviting look — a comforting aesthetic that explains their enduring appeal.
Find antique and vintage William Moorcroft pottery, vases, serveware and more on 1stDibs.
William Moorcroft Poppy Vase c1925
By William Moorcroft
Located in Tunbridge Wells, GB
Heading : A William Moorcroft poppy vase Date : c1925 Origin : Burslem, England Features : Indigi-blue ground with five large poppies. Marks : WM sign...
Ceramic
Moorcroft Pottery Big Poppy Vase
By Moorcroft Pottery
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A large Moorcroft Pottery big poppy vase. Walter Moorcroft era. The base bears impressed marks and a blue glaze script Walter Moorcroft signature. ...
Pottery
Ceramic Vase, Glazed Stoneware Vase, Ciboure Pottery, France, circa 1925
By Ciboure
Located in New York, NY
One of a set of beautiful ceramics from Ciboure Pottery, this piece is inspired by antiquity—evident in its form, its spare coloring, and its depiction of classical figures. Produced...
Stoneware
Charles Catteau for Kéramis, Art Deco Vase, Belgium, 1925
By Boch La Louviere, Charles Catteau
Located in New York, NY
Signed in ink: Ch. Catteau Marked in ink: D.1009 (design number) Incised: Grès Kéramis and 901 (shape number) Stamped: Boch F es La Louvière made in Belgium This vase displays Catte...
Stoneware
$9,800
H 9.5 in W 5 in D 5 in
Ceramic Vase, Glazed Grecian-style Vase, Ciboure Pottery, France, circa 1925
By Ciboure
Located in New York, NY
One of a set of beautiful ceramics from Ciboure Pottery, this piece is inspired by antiquity—evident in its urn-like form, its spare coloring, and its depiction of classical subjects...
Stoneware
Ceramic Vase, Grecian-style Pitcher, Ciboure Pottery, France, circa 1925
By Ciboure
Located in New York, NY
One of a set of beautiful ceramics from Ciboure Pottery, this piece is inspired by antiquity—evident in its form, its spare coloring, key patterning, and its stylized depiction of an...
Stoneware
William Moorcroft Macintyre Art Nouveau Rare Blue Dahlia Pattern Goblet
By William Moorcroft
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
Art Nouveau James MacIntyre & Co. Florian Ware goblet decorated with tube lined decoration in a rare ‘Dahlia’ variant design by William Moorcroft and dating from 1903. William Moorcr...
Pottery
Ceramic Set by Holland Gouda, Netherlands, 1925
By Gouda Plateelbakkerij Zuid-Holland
Located in Roma, IT
This ceramic set is a lot of various decorative objects realized by Holland Gouda in Netherlands, in circa 1925. This set is composed of: - A jug wi...
Ceramic
Charles Catteau for Kéramis, Art Deco Vase, Belgium, 1925
By Charles Catteau, Boch La Louviere
Located in New York, NY
Signed in ink: Ch. Catteau Marked in ink: D.1009 (design number) Incised: Grès Kéramis and 901 (shape number) Stamped: Boch F es La Louvière made in Belgi...
Stoneware
$11,000
H 8.5 in W 4.5 in D 4.5 in
Grecian-style Ceramic Vase with Goats, Ciboure Pottery, France, circa 1925
By Ciboure
Located in New York, NY
One of a set of beautiful ceramics from Ciboure Pottery, this piece is inspired by antiquity—evident in its urn-like form, its spare coloring, and its depiction of classical subjects...
Stoneware
$2,750
H 4.38 in Dm 9.26 in
Circa 1925 "Moonlit Blue" Ceramic & Pewter Compote Bowl by Moorcroft, England
By Moorcroft Pottery
Located in Chapel Hill, NC
Circa 1925 Moorcroft "Moonlit Blue" ceramic & pewter compote bowl, England. Arts & Crafts period, made for Liberty's. Large tree with stylized landscape in a deep blue backgr...
Pewter
$6,000
H 6 in W 5 in D 5 in
Ceramic Vase, Glazed Stoneware Pitcher, Ciboure Pottery, France, circa 1925
By Ciboure
Located in New York, NY
One of a set of beautiful ceramics from Ciboure Pottery, this piece is inspired by antiquity—evident in its form, its spare coloring, and its depiction of nature. Produced in the per...
Stoneware
Charles Catteau for Kéramis, Art Deco Ceramic Vase, Belgium, 1925
By Charles Catteau, Boch Freres Keramis
Located in New York, NY
Signed in ink: Ch. Catteau Marked in ink: D.1009 (design number) Incised: Grès Kéramis and 898 (shape number) Stamped: Boch F es La Louvière made in Belgium This vase displays Catte...
Stoneware
Sold
H 4.34 in Dm 3.75 in
William Moorcroft for James MacIntyre Florian Ware Poppy Pattern Preserve Pot
By William Moorcroft
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A very stylish and finely made James Macintyre & Co Florian Ware ceramic preserve pot decorated with poppies by renowned English born potter William Moorc...
Silver Plate
Sold
H 2.76 in Dm 7.09 in
William Moorcroft Liberty & Co Forget Me Not and Rose Pattern Art Pottery Bowl
By William Moorcroft
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A stylish art pottery bowl made for Liberty & Co decorated with tube lined Forget Me Not’s and Rose’s forming garlands around the body of the bowl by William Moorcroft (British, 1872...
Ceramic
Early William Moorcroft Pottery Large Dish in Freesia Pattern, circa 1935
By William Moorcroft
Located in Lincoln, Lincolnshire
This is a very good early example of a large diameter dish or shallow bowl made by William Moorcroft, of Moorcroft Pottery in the Freesia pattern and dating to circa 1935. A very ...
Pottery
William Moorcroft MacIntyre Art Nouveau Elegant Blue Carnation Pottery Vase
By William Moorcroft
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
Art Nouveau James MacIntyre & Co. Florian Ware tall elegantly shaped vase decorated with tube lined carnations designed by William Moorcroft (English, 1872-1945) and dating from arou...
Earthenware
William Moorcroft MacIntyre Art Nouveau Tube Lined Florian Ware Loving Cup
By William Moorcroft
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
Art Nouveau James MacIntyre & Co. Florian Ware three-handled flared loving cup decorated with tube lined floral designs by William Moorcroft and dating fr...
Pottery