Linn Ware: Celebrating the Ceramics of Olifantsfontein

Timed Online Auction, 2 - 13 May 2025

Session One
About the Session

This sale features a broad selection of Linn Ware that celebrates South Africa’s rich ceramic traditions highlighting a key moment in the country’s artistic development — during a period when industrialisation and mass production were rapidly transforming the design landscape.  The Ceramic Studio, renamed Linn Ware in 1943, was founded on Sir Thomas Cullinan’s farm Olifantsfontein, outside Johannesburg which had rich deposits of clay and lime. It was staffed mostly by women students from the Durban School of Art, several of whom studied further at the Royal College of Art, London.  The Studio closed in the late 1950’s but left behind a beautiful body of work that is highly collectable today. Discover more about Linn Ware's fascinating history here.

 


Current Bid

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Lot 7
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed pedestal vase
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed pedestal vase
  • Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio; Lobed pedestal vase


Lot Estimate
ZAR 8 000 - 10 000
Current Bid
Starting at ZAR 8 000
Location
Cape Town
Delivery
Additional delivery charges apply
Shipping
Condition Report
May include additional detailed images
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About this Item

Olifantsfontein, South Africa 1925 - 1955
Lobed pedestal vase

stamped indistinctly

sage-glazed earthenware
17cm high, 25,5cm diameter

Notes

The Ceramic Studio, renamed Linn Ware in 1943, was founded on Sir Thomas Cullinan's farm Olifantsfontein, outside Johannesburg which had rich deposits of clay and lime. It was staffed mostly by women students from the Durban School of Art, several of whom studied further at the Royal College of Art, London. The Studio closed in the late 1950's but left behind a body of beautiful work that is highly collectable today.

Each piece was handmade and individually double-glazed, giving the work its distinctive and characteristic luminosity for which they became renowned. Several items make use of the pedestal, which required a careful balance of form and structure.

View all Linn Ware/Ceramic Studio lots for sale in this auction