Redlands Pottery

Acquired by the present owner in Vancouver, circa 1990s

Leslie Greene Bowman, American Arts & Crafts: Virtue in Design, exh. cat., Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1990, p. 175

Overall very good condition. The earthenware with some very minor surface scratches consistent with age and gentle handling. The bowl has been inspected under black light and does not show evidence of prior restoration. With a minute irregularity in the earthenware between the crab's rear two legs on the left side. With light surface soiling to the recessed areas of the design. A very charming and beautifully executed design.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Wesley H. Trippett began his career working for Tiffany Studios in New York as a designer of architectural and decorative metalwork.  He became acquainted with pottery during his tenure at Tiffany, where he modeled clay to articulate his designs. When he moved to California around 1895, he settled in Redlands and founded Redlands Pottery around 1904.

Working entirely on his own and drawing inspiration from his own encounters with nature, Trippett produced a small repertoire of bowls and vases inspired by animals and plants indigenous to the West Coast.  Flowers, frogs, horn-toads, lizards, rabbits, and crabs, among others, were all rendered delicately in clay.  He not only sought to represent flora and fauna imagery in his designs, he worked to ensure that his treatment of the clay preserved its natural color and beauty.

The present "Crab" bowl captures the poetry of the natural world that Trippett so admired.  All elements of its composition—from the form of the vessel and the manner in which the crab is articulated around it, to its diminutive scale and the earthy quality of the clay—make it seem as though it was plucked directly from nature.