Hanstan

Designer	Hans Wright
Maker	Hanstan
Marks	Incised “Hanstan Studio” to base
Material	Moulded slipware
Description	White matte moulded slipware exterior Plain circular bowl tapering to flat circular base.  Rounded lip.  Spurmarks on base.  Hand painted interior in green to simulate wheel throwing.  Dimpled thumb shaped tab handle
Condition	Good.  Exterior slip discoloured with age and use.
Number	No number
Production Date	1980s
Width at rim	118mm
Width at Base	80mm
Depth	48mm
Length (with handle)	163mm
Weight	295gm
Volume	375ml
Acquisition	Purchase E-Bay 23 October 2013
Rameking Reference Number	HAN 001-004

Congratulations! You have found the only place in the world where you will find anything much about this pottery. Homewares makers don't rate the same column inches as the trendier art potters.

Not rare, not studio (although that is what they called it) and definitely not expensive. If you see them at an inflated price, go to the nearest op shop and pick up the same thing for a couple of bucks. Hanstan were mostly made on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula,in the 1960s to the early 90s.  I have been told that their pottery was located at Mornington in the Industrial area.  Starting in 1962, most of their considerable output was domestic or kitchenware so they don't appear on the radar of most of the trendy wanker collectors. Have a look in any op shop and there is sure to be at least one piece.  There are several patterns of ramekins, but only one shape.    Later, they produced a lustre ware version under the "Colourware" brand.

These ramekins are stoneware and have what is referred to as an "avocado" or speckled texture, as a result of the glaze being sprayed onto the clay. They appear to be salt glazed, one set having a burnt orange centre, the other set, off white. A third set has contrasting incised vertical strping similar to the David and Hermia Boyd ramekins, although there are much hevier and thicker walled.  Hanstan output was originally mostly marked with a large incised signature "Hanstan" to the base. Other later works had either a black stamp or a black and gold sticker. These were used after Hanstan moved from hand painting to transfer designs.

Hanstan refers to Hans Wright and Stan Burrage. The partnership apparently didn’t last long as I was told the two had a falling out in the early sixties with Hans and Mrs Wright continuing the pottery.

Hans Earle Wright was a salesman turned potter turned archer. He was born in the mid 1930s and completed an art course at the Melbourne Technical College, now RMIT. He started out helping a fellow student make jewellery. He married Patricia, a nurse and then moved from Sandringham to Mount Eliza.

Hans had more than one string to his bow, being Australia's best archer, he won about fifteen Australian Championships. Hans would train archers in the factory, believing that the noise of the pottery would make the archers less likely to be distracted in competition. Good for the archers but somewhat off putting for the potters. There is no record of anyone being hit by an arrow. I wonder what the Health and Safety people today would make of this. Mrs Wright would manage the pottery when Hans went off to the many archery competitions he took part in.

For two years from age 19 to 21 well known former graffiti artist Arjuna Watson worked at Hanstan Pottery Studio, hand-painting floral Christopher Vine designs. (Afterwards he makes himself a promise: “I will never paint an iris again”.) Christopher vine would come to the pottery whenever he came up with new lines. Thanks AJ for the info. If anyone has more information about this pottery, I would be pleased to hear from you. I know you are still out there Hans.

The Stan was Stanley Leonard Scud Burrage who was born in Robinvale Victoria on the 7^th of December 1935 and was christened at Traralgon, Victoria one year later. Like Hans, he originally worked in sales but together they began Hanstan pottery at his parents, George and Elsie (Weymouth) Burrage’ home and poultry farm on Springvale road, Springvale, Victoria in 1962. 

The partnership dissolved in 1964 and Hans then continued the business in Mornington,  Stan and wife Helen went overseas for two years then they moved to the bayside suburb of Mentone, where they ran a hardware shop in Hampton for two years. then back to Vinifera near Swan Hill to be an Orchardist betweenn 1972 to 75.  Later, in the early 1980s, Stan worked as a contractor in Dingley, Victoria.  Stan died too young at the age of 52 in Montrose Victoria on the 1st of March 1987

The Wrights lived in Mount Eliza and worked in the neighbouring town of Mornington. Hans is reputed to have been a bit of a workaholic. The pottery was run as a fully commercial operation, producing mainly domestic wares.  Staff served a form of "apprenticeship" doing routine process work before graduating to more involved work. Starting in the sanding booth, cleaning up the bodies from the moulds before moving on to glazing, then if you were good enough, or had lasted the distance, decorating.

A big thank-you to Stan’s wife and daughter for some of the information and corrections. Sorry for the mix up over the dates.  Various family history sites have Stans death as being 1/3/87.  The American way of doing them means that it is the 3rd of January whilst the rest of the world says the 1st of March.  That is why you should always spell out the month.  If any of the workers from Mornington are out there, please let me know your story.  (That means you Nola.)