A new lease of life has been breathed in Nantgarw Pottery after a pair of artists established their business in the historic building, allowing tourists to visit the site throughout the week.
The world-famous pottery, which houses its own museum with a collection of the famous Nantgarw porcelain on show, also has a bottle kiln and plenty of historic artifacts recording the early days of the site when William Billingsley opened it in 1813. There are also first-class conference facilities on offer to businesses.
For the past year the pottery has been closed to the public following restructuring. But sculptor and filmmaker Mike and Cath Cole have now transferred their business there from the Model House Craft and Design Centre in Llantrisant.
Mike is a jeweler and sculptor working in metal, stone and glass. He has had jewellery exhibited in Goldsmiths Hall and is currently selecting sculptures to show at Visionary – a joint exhibition by contemporary Welsh artists, starting next month at Cardiff Optometry School.
Cath works in many media. She has had one short film screened internationally and received an award for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Newport International Film Festival 2009.
She explained, “We are planning some exciting new creative experiences of the beautiful historic site at Nantgarw. Mike’s popular jewellery courses will run here with dates beginning in January and we are looking for artists to contribute to our Christmas calendar of demonstration and making events.
“It is a wonderful opportunity to be sited in such surroundings. We have already had very positive reaction locally and I’m sure plenty of visitors to the county borough will want to see for themselves the proud heritage association with the pottery.
”We’ll ensure the warmest of welcomes to them as they get to explore more about the history of the world-famous porcelain which was created here almost 200 years ago.”
Nantgarw House was semi-derelict when bought by Taff Ely County Borough Council in 1989. It was opened to the public two years later. Since then there has been a well-planned schedule of archaeological excavation and partial restoration of the kilns, and clearing of the industrial site. The coach house and other ancillary buildings were refurbished for educational purposes.
The pottery is supported by the Association of Friends of Nantgarw who continue to play an active role in ensuring the continued success of the site. They have raised funds and supported a programme of repairs and rebuilding and partial restoration of the kilns and ancillary buildings for educational purposes. The Friends run an annual programme of lectures and established a Building Preservation Trust giving more powers for funding for restoration and repairs.
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Recreation and Tourism Cllr Robert Bevan said: “Nantgarw Pottery is one of the jewels in Rhondda Cynon Taf and attracts many hundreds of visitors per year. Thanks to the support and enthusiasm of Mike and Cath Cole, I’m convinced the site will have a very bright future and will welcome many, many more visitors to Rhondda Cynon Taf.
“Nantgarw Pottery has a world-famous reputation for producing porcelain of the highest quality. Along with so many other historical sites in the county borough, I can safely say that Rhondda Cynon Taf is one of the most fascinating and diverse areas in the world.
“It has produced world-famous individuals in the realms of sport, acting, singing, industry and politics to name but a few – as illustrated by the successful Blue Plaque scheme recently completed by the Council.
“It is steeped in ancient and industrial history and as such is known throughout the world. Nantgarw Pottery is certainly one of the most prominent of its historical sites and I’m sure its continued success has now been secured.”
Nantgarw Pottery was established in November 1813, when artist and potter William Billingsley of Royal Worcester and his son-in-law Samuel Walker, a skilled technician, purchased Nantgarw House on the eastern bank of the Glamorganshire Canal.
With £250 to invest in their new project, they used a secret recipe of bones burnt and mixed with clay to create porcelain and began their production. With mutual friend, earthenware decorator Thomas Pardoe, the pottery was soon established.
Even with the financial help of William Weston Young, Billingsley failed to produce a stable porcelain because of a high rate of collapse in the kiln, although the firings that where successful were now producing the finest porcelain. Between 1817 and 1820 he succeeded and the majority of the Nantgarw porcelain produced at this time was sent to London to be decorated for the aristocracy and royalty.
William Billingsley left Nantgarw in 1820 after seeing both his daughters die during the short time he had spent in South Wales. William Weston Young tried to recuperate some of his losses by employing Thomas Pardoe to decorate the remaining pieces. In 1822 the remainder of the Nantgarw porcelain was sold at auction and the factory closed.
In 1833 William Henry Pardoe, took over the vacant Nantgarw Pottery and began manufacturing stoneware bottles and brown glazed earthenware. He also began manufacturing clay tobacco pipes, many of which were exported to Ireland. The business continued under Pardoe’s descendants, and at its peak produced around 10,000 pipes a week, until its closure in 1920.
Nantgarw Pottery is open to the public from Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm. For further details about the museum and the conference facilities, contact 01443 841703. For details on further events, visit www.makersworkbench.com
