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Crown Lynn: A New Cup of Tea

The thought of seeing your dinner set in a gallery is as laughable today as it was a century ago, yet the crockery of the 1950s will sit proudly in Wellington’s City Gallery for the next three months – along with some new additions.

Crown Lynn ceramics were manufactured in New Zealand between 1950 and 1970, and used in homes all across the country. From jaunty tea cups to the iconic swan vases, it was down-to-earth crockery for a down-to-earth nation.

After the closure of their Auckland factory in 1989, and the subsequent shift of ownership to Kuala Lumpur’s GBH Crown Lynn, the value of original Crown Lynn pieces rose steadily as they became less readily available. Last year Michael Hall, great-grandson of Crown Lynn founder Tom Clark (1916 – 2005), secured the return of the company to New Zealand soil and production of a contemporary line of dinnerware began from the new Wellington factory. Situated in the heart of Thorndon, Wellington Crown Lynn jumpstarted the crockery revival throughout New Zealand.

Owner of the Newtown Second-Hand Warehouse, Tracy Lewis, claims her store hasn’t seen a ceramic piece in months. “Every day we’re asked if there is anything in. Any plates or mugs or vases. It’s always the same reply – we’re completely cleaned out.”

Mrs. Lewis is a ceramics collector herself, though her collection is not limited to dinnerware.

“I love the little animals. Pigs and cows – my favourite! It’s so comforting to have and hold a piece of the past, but a little strange to think they were once brand new and hi-tech.”

Crown Lynn hunters will be hard pressed to find any original creations in their local warehouses, with collected pieces being valued at a minimum of $2000.

The largest collection of these original pieces will be shown at City Gallery in its latest exhibition The Crown Lynn Legacy (29 June – 24 September 2040).

Their previous showcase of Crown Lynn in 2011 pulled together characteristic pieces from the twentieth century, but curator Jack Lynch says this time around there are some fresh additions.

“We've included the latest dinnerware set from Wellington Crown Lynn; their first this year. It’s a bit of a change from the vintage collection and replicas, definitely a new chapter in the legacy.”

Though the new crockery may seem like a step away from the traditional, it has the potential to become a kiwi classic. Made from extra-thin translucent ceramic, the ‘Conch’ set utilises the latest customisation technology. Each piece begins as a flat sheet, which is then folded and stretched into whichever vessel is required. From one square of moldable ceramic any shape or size cup, plate, bowl or vase can be created, giving homemakers complete control over their dinner set.

Aroha Scott, Wellington Crown Lynn’s Chief Designer, explains that the collection is more than just crockery. “ Conch is a call back to the good old days of DIY New Zealand. We had a reputation for doing things our way, with the simplest of materials. This collection allows everybody to experience the feeling of creating something themselves; of getting back to a time when we could see, taste, touch, and smell our cuppa, and with Wellington becoming a more sensory capital it just makes sense.”

The Crown Lynn Legacy opens at City Gallery Wellington on the 29^th of June.