Susan Parkinson EIIR Lion & Unicorn

A pair of Modernist ceramic statues in the form of a Lion & Unicorn designed by Susan Parkinson in 1951. These striking figures are central to the story of Richard and Susan Parkinson’s pottery and are among the earliest designs ever created by Susan.

In addition to the slight yet evocative features of the lion and unicorn, each figure is painted with stylised fleur-de-lis, '1953', and 'EIIR' (Elizabeth Regina).
This reveals this pair as an early example, made in the first year of production, which coincided with and commemorated the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

The sculptural forms of Susan’s lion and unicorn were inspired by Arnold Machin’s Zodiac Bull, manufactured by Wedgwood. First exhibited in the V&A’s Britain Can Make It exhibition, Susan was greatly impressed when she saw Zodiac Bull and thought it would be “good fun” to produce a lion and unicorn in a similar style for the Festival of Britain in 1951. [1]

S. Parkinson did not meet the deadline for the Festival. Cashmore and Vincent-Smith suggest this was due to Parkinson having just knowledge of moulding methods used for sculpture. Specifically, she had only learned techniques in waste and piece moulding while at the Royal College of Art. [2] 

As a result, Susan made the first lion and unicorn models in clay and cast them in plaster of paris, before painting them in an unexacting yet proficient way with ink decoration.
And so almost by accident S. Parkinson created the black and white style that was to become the signature of her pottery. However, also using black and white decoration in the early-1950s were William Newland, Nicholas Vergette and Margaret Hine (the Bayswater Three, aka 'Picassoettes') who were a great inspiration to Susan Parkinson. [3] 

The final fortuitous development regards the Lion & Unicorn becoming available to others was with thanks to the Parkinson’s photographer friend Henry Lewes, who had studied with Richard at Guildford School of Art. Lewes had taken some photographs of S. Parkinson’s work and succeeded in getting an image of the Lion & Unicorn printed in the Architects' Journal, the publication he was doing free-lance work for.

The photo, in the Architects Journal of 9th October 1952, was accompanied by an optimistic description by R Parkinson, however, everyone was astonished that they received orders from architects for the two ink on plaster models. [4]
Enthused by the interest of and demand from architects the Parkinson’s decided that they could produce the models in ceramic and Susan returned to the Royal College of Art for assistance. Once with moulds the Parkinson’s set about creating a business, their pottery was born, and the lion and unicorn provided the backbone of the Pottery's commercial success during its first few years.

[1] Victoria & Albert Museum's, Britain Can Make It exhibition, organised by the Council of Industrial Design, 1946

[2] Cashmore, Carol and Vincent-Smith, Tim. 'Susan Parkinson and the Richard Parkinson Pottery' (Carol Cashmore, 2004).

[3] William Newland, Nicholas Vergette and Margaret Hine were disparagingly named the 'Picassoettes' by Bernard Leach. The phenomenally inspirational teacher of this trio (and many others) was ceramist Dora Billington. Special mention must also be made to James Tower, due to similarities in his and Parkinson's work.

[4] Richard Parkinson’s description beneath the photograph read: "The photograph shows examples of ceramic sculpture designed by Susan Sanderson in white glazed porcelain with lemon yellow, delft blue or lustre decorations. These designs, which are being submitted to the COID (The Council of Industrial Design) for approval as Coronation souvenirs, are produced by Richard Parkinson and Partners, a small country pottery in Kent built in an old stable and oast house.