The lives of three female and one male artist working at the Della Robbia Pottery in Birkenhead are the subjects of a case study located in Liverpool. The case study examines the larger issues concerning the employment of women, particularly working and middle-class women, in the decorative arts in late Victorian and Edwardian England. The findings are analysed in the light of interpretative models employed by feminist historians, particularly the view that women's professional involvement and access to training was shaped and constrained by ideologies of gender. The study examines the extent to which the academic institutions, which provided the training, institutionalised ideologies of appropriate feminine activity in their admission procedures, availability of classes, and financial barriers to participation. Blackburne House School, the Liverpool School of Art, The University Art Sheds and the Sandon School of Art are the main institutions studied. The structure of the work place, as defined by the Della Robbia Pottery, is analysed for gendered patterns in the division of labour. The influence of the Arts and Crafts Movement in the context of current debate amongst art historians is referenced to the experiences of both the male and female employees at the pottery. The functions of exhibitions are examined in the light of their importance to the development of women's professional advancement. Two important movements integral to women's history, Socialism and Suffiagism were found to exist at the pottery and their effect on the artists' lives are investigated. Finally the workings of the Victorian and Edwardian art world are demonstrated through the activities of the Liverpool Positivist Church which had a strong presence at the Della Robbia Pottery.
Permanent link to this resource: https://doi.org/10.24384/tx3k-fp63
Hawley, Kathleen C.
Supervisors: Durning, Louise; Sheehy, Jeanne
Department of History, Philosophy and CultureFaculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Year: 2001
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