Saturday, March 1, 2014

Tea with Adam Buck

Chronica Domus
Tea bowls and saucers in the style of Adam Buck
Photo: Chronica Domus


It seems to me that most people nowadays lead terribly hurried lives, myself included.  With a busy work schedule, social engagements, child rearing, dog walking, housekeeping, gardening, and then squeezing in everything else one need accomplish to lead a somewhat orderly and enjoyable life, little time remains for much else.  How do we all cope?  One dares only speak for oneself on this score, of course.  So, on those afternoons which find me at home, briefly without obligation, and in need of a restorative brew, I put the kettle on.  I  force myself to sit down for a few indulgent moments and partake of tea with Adam Buck.

Chronica Domus
Self portrait of the artist and his family, Adam Buck 1813


Adam Buck was a celebrated Irish artist who made his name in London as a miniature painter, portraitist and illustrator during the English Regency period.  His works were heavily influenced by the Greek Revival movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, often depicting maternal scenes in classical poses and other vignettes of domesticated life.  Adam Buck's work, or at least work emulating his style, began to appear on various ceramics during this period.

Chronica Domus
Mother and child draped across a klismos chair
Photo: Chronica Domus


I do not own any of Buck's popular illustrations of the day, showing fashionable interiors and fashionable people. I do, however, feel quite fortunate to possess a set of six pearlware tea bowls, sans handles, and corresponding deep saucers, embellished with copper and pink lustre bands.  The delightful images that appear on the bowls and saucers were made using a process known as bat printing, a method of decoration that fell out of style around 1820, due to the complexities of applying it to the surface of ceramics correctly.  The glaze on these pieces has a slight blueish tint to it, a characteristic of early pearlware, achieved by the addition of a small amount of cobalt added to the glaze.

Chronica Domus
At play on an elegant Regency day bed
Photo: Chronica Domus


The teaware is decorated with charming images of mothers and their playful children draped over classical Greek furniture, such as a klismos chair with its elegantly curved legs, and a chaise longue or day bed.  Tempting cherries dangling before an excited child, plucked from a wicker hand basket, and a rattling tambourine, convey the jovial atmosphere of Regency mothers at play.  Their clothing is typical of the era, particularly the high-waisted muslin dresses with little puffy sleeves, accentuating their womanly figures.  Notice the women's hair is styled high on their heads, some with the aid of a bandeau, again reflecting styles typical of ancient Greece.

Chronica Domus
The epitome of Regency motherhood
Photo: Chronica Domus


I do so enjoy taking the time to sit down for a few gratifying moments while immersing myself in the pleasures of tea drinking.  More so, I think, when I can drink from tea bowls that I very much imagine were privy to some scintillating conversations of the day, by genteel ladies and gentlemen, sitting in well appointed drawing rooms.  I wonder what Adam Buck would have discussed were he to be sipping tea from these bowls?

Much like the rest of us, I do make use of more conventional cups and saucers for drinking hot beverages (all with handles attached to the cups), but these particular pieces remain my favorite.

Do you have an especially cherished cup from which you like to sip tea or coffee, and if so, do you force yourself to take an afternoon break to catch your breath?

10 comments:

  1. I do like the proportion of your tea bowls and saucers.

    If we have tea in the afternoon, it is usually Japanese sencha...served in Japanese tea 'cups' sans handles. They are 'decorated' with reproductions of Japanese erotic wood cuts and were a joke gift from a friend during the time when my husband and I were courting. Not nearly as tasteful as your beautiful tea set I'm afraid, but they do have sentimental value.

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    1. Hello JW,

      Thank you for your comment on what sounds like a perfectly jolly gift that pre-dates your husband. I can see how there would be a lot of sentimentally wrapped around it.

      I do enjoy green tea when dining at Japanese restaurants. However, my afternoon brew of choice is Smokey Earl Grey by Fortnum & Mason. I accidentally purchased a tin many years ago when it was labeled simply as Earl Grey. Someone in their marketing department wised up to the fact that this particular blend is not what most traditional Earl Grey tea tastes like - this was F&Ms blend and includes Lapsang and Gunpowder teas. No wonder it tastes smokey!

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    2. Thank you for your reply!

      In the summertime I enjoy ice tea in the afternoon...often made with traditional Earl Grey. I drink my 'ice tea' without ice, as I prefer it cool to room temperature.

      The F&M blend sounds delicious.

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    3. Oh, it never occurred to me to try ice tea using Earl Grey, with or without the ice. Thanks for the idea!

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  2. Yes, yes indeed. In 1958, as a young woman, I indulged myself in a tea set of no particular distinction save that the cups and the tea pot are in the shape of yellow pumpkin-like squash. This set has been hauled from one coast to the other and now and again, meaning about once every 10 or 15 years I take it out and use it in just the fashion you have described. And what a joy that is. Who would have guessed that all those years ago in Palm Springs California I would be enjoying my purchase in Washington DC. Thank you for bringing such a lovely topic to the attention of your faithful readers. Ann

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    1. Hello Ann, thank you for your comment and I do hope you continue to enjoy my blog and visit it often.

      The simple act of sitting down to tea for a few moments in the afternoon is really a great way to take stock and relax. I hope I've inspired you to do it more often than "every 10 or 15 years", especially as you have such a treasured tea service you enjoy using.

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  3. Hello!

    For some unknown reason, the comment we left here seems to have been swallowed up and is no more......!

    Your tea bowls and saucers are truly delightful. Without doubt, they transport one back to a gentler age when Afternoon Tea taken in the Drawing Room with thinly sliced cucumber sandwiches, cake and tea, of course, was a ritual observed by many with the most delicious of conversation as the entertainment.

    The quality of detail in the decorative elements is quite superb. An amazing feat indeed when one considers that the images had not only to be created but also applied to the ceramic base.

    On warm afternoons when drinking from fine china, we enjoy nothing better than 'Lady Grey' tea served with lemon rather than milk. Slightly more subtle than its manly companion, 'Earl Grey' it does make the most refreshingly elegant drink!

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    1. Hello Jane and Lance, the blogosphere is a mysterious place indeed, and it is especially baffling when comments disappear right from under one's nose. I am happy you came back to add yours again, thank you.

      I agree with you, there is nothing more delicious than cucumber sandwiches and entertaining conversation in the afternoon.

      I have yet to try a cup of gentle Lady Grey tea, preferring instead Fortnum's rather robust Smokey Earl Grey. Talk about a "manly" tea - that just about sums it up!

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  4. What a glorious self-portrait by Adam Buck, with its stylised and proportioned format. One does feel just slightly sorry for the cat, (assuming it's about to take a bath).

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    Replies
    1. Hello Columnist, thank you for stopping by my blog and commenting.

      I too adore this portrait and would be thrilled to see it for myself one day if I ever get out to Connecticut.

      As to the poor cat, my childhood kitties were treated in much the same fashion I'm affraid. I am sure they secretly loved it.

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