“The Temptress” by Victoria Bourne for Peggy Davies Ceramics, Original Artist Colorway 1/1, c. 1990-2010

“The Temptress” is a one-of-one hand-painted earthenware figure from Peggy Davies Ceramics of Stoke-on-Trent, decorated by Victoria Bourne as an Artist Original Colorway. The base is signed by hand, marking it as the only example painted in this scheme.

The figure takes the classic odalisque pose, a theme that runs from Ingres through the Art Deco salon. A nude woman reclines in a pale celadon hooded cloak that pools beneath her in deeply modeled folds. Her eyes and lips are rendered in a stylized Deco manner, and she wears a forehead ornament, a fine painted necklace, a wrist bangle and anklets. One knee is raised and one foot is pointed like a dancer’s.

The plinth is what makes this colorway. Its front face is a patchwork of hand-painted animal prints: leopard spots in lilac and butter yellow, tiger stripes in pink and gold, and a lavender giraffe pattern, all outlined in black. The top is glossy black, and the reverse and ends are left in a creamy glaze. The effect sits somewhere between 1930s Deco and 1980s Memphis.

Signed by hand on the base: “Artist Original Colorway 1/1, For Peggy Davies, By Victoria Bourne.”

MAKER: Victoria Bourne, for Peggy Davies Ceramics

DIMENSIONS: 10.5" L x 6.5" H

ORIGIN: Stoke-On-Trent, England

PERIOD: c. 1990-2010

MATERIALS: Glazed ceramic, hand-painted plinth

CONDITION: Very good original condition. Intact. No chips, cracks, or repairs.

SKU: BR00060