Ladi Kwali, Abuja Pottery, Nigeria

Hello

I have a very attractive tankard, which I believe was made by Ladi Kwali at the Abuja pottery.  The tankard stands 6" high and has an elephant design in the glaze (see photos).  According to sources on the Internet, Ladi Kwali lived from ca 1925 until 1984 and was heavily influenced by Michael Cardew.  Can anyone tell from the style how old the tankard is likely to be?

Many thanks


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Ladi Kwali was making coiled village pots before meeting Michael Cardew but you are correct in saying that this is by her and the other mark is the Abuja mark in Arabic script.

Your tankard is heavily influenced by Cardew, as it was thought that we knew what the Nigerian people needed better than they did themselves, which to my mind was a great shame.

The blue of the jun glaze, which began to be used at Abuja in 1958 and the fact that the tankard is thrown suggests to me a date in the early 1960s.

Thanks, studio-pots , that was very informative.

I have noticed that there are two similar tankards (different decoration) by Ladi Kwali on Ebay at the moment if you want to get an idea of the value. They finish is just over 19 hours if you wish to have a look.

Thanks again. Just for the record, the tankards went for 104 and 105 GBP.

does that look like LR?

Turned round it looks like LK.

I now realize this is probably an abuja pot brought back from Nigeria by my parents similar to the pot Sp suggested was abuja

Looks like LK for Ladi Kwali

I do remember a year ago thinking that this bowl might have been from Abuja. The shape of the marks and the decoration look right but the complete glazing within the foot ring and the colour of the stoneware are not like the majority of Abuja pieces. I do think you're right though Paul especially as your parents were in Nigeria.

Its Ladi Kwali's LK mark, Abuja. An example with the same pair of stamps

A week or so ago this water pot by Ladi Kwali turned up at an auction room close by , it was a great piece to look at  but at sometime in its life it must have been dropped and badly  broken then roughly glued back together , the total price fetched was about £2000 inclusive . Before the auction i obtained an estimate for the cost of restoration which would be a minimum of around £800 but even with this the new owner  would still have a heavily restored pot, bearing in mind the most recent price for an equivalent example in good condition was around £12000 ,was it worth it???.

I have ignored the recent Driscoll airplane example in this price comparison.

I wouldn't have thought it was worth it but I know that several pieces of her work have smashed in this way during transit from Nigeria, having spoken with Michael OBrien. Michael is the English potter, who has spent much of his life working in Africa and mostly in Nigeria.

The potter, Chris Lewis, bought a large pot of hers and another by a lesser known female potter while in Nigeria and had them both shipped back. The one by the lesser known potter arrived in perfect condition but the Kwali was smashed. He had it restored but for him that was part of the story and its history.

The story with this pot was that it was brought back from Africa with other items in the 60's and has been in the families possession since then . I have always steered well clear of restored or damaged items , but i suppose the buyer now has an example of a pot that he or she might not have been able to buy in perfect condition.

Knowing of rather dubious practices that took place in some auction houses in the past (and may still take place), I am sure there are many collectors of rather expensive ceramics that are not aware of the restoration that some of their collection may have had.

Yes i quite agree many collectors are unaware of the considerable improvements made in ceramic restoration in recent years and have probably bought unknowingly restored items at auction and only find out to their cost when they decide to sell. A number of auction rooms often cover themselves by saying in condition reports ''no apparent restoration but we are not experts in this field and personal viewing is highly recommended'' .

From a large display of Female potters Ladi Kwali's work stands out really well. Amongst all the competing styles  at the York COCA exhibition in 2023. One realises just how superb her work is. The recent sharp rise in prices in her work may well be driven by Nigerians-of which there are many in the UK now- appreciating just how much of a very fine potter she was.

From the  COCA York .Part of a very large display of female potters.

From COCA York June 2023. Part of a very large display of female potters.