CULA Potteries

Designer        Ken Day? Maker CULA Potteries Marks Hand Painted in black “Cula D65” Material Mould formed slipware. Description Cream coloured exterior of bowl with offset unglazed foot ring. Yellow and black interior glaze with sgraffito wavy lines to interior. Reinforces semicircular handle attached to top edge of rim of bowl. Condition Very Good, Number D 65 Production Date Before 1958 Width at rim 113mm Width at Base 55mm Depth 48mm Weight 143gm Volume 237ml (1 cup in old money) Acquisition Purchase Daylesford 23 June 2018 Rameking Reference Number CUL 001, 002
Despite years of collecting, sometimes a surprise comes along.  This one happened recently when I found these two ramekins hiding on the bottom shelf of a retro/antique store in Daylesford Victoria.  They are from CULA Pottery, yet another small manufacturer that began after the Second-World-War.  In 1946 Ex-Servicemen Ronald Frank Curnow (1914-1998), originally a Queensland boy, later of Narrabeen and William Langley (combined the first two initials of their surnames to form CuLa) purchased a small working pottery in Grenwich, Sydney (I don't know which pottery).  In 1948 the partnership was dissolved.  Just who continued, I also don’t know.  In 1950 the works were relocated to larger premises at Brookvale in the Wahringah Shire in Sydney.  Into this pottery came master potter and mould maker Ken Day.  Ken had previously worked for Diana for many years.  He made moulds for CULA and other potteries at this time.  It is better than even money that he made the moulds for these ramekins.  He began his own pottery “DAYEL” in 1955 and operated it until 1957. The CULA pottery closed in 1958, most likely yet another victim of the trade agreement with Japan.  Ken then set up as a contract modeler in the old Martin Boyd pottery.  CULA made a variety of slip cast wares including these ramekins glazed in a variety of dark orange through to brown.  Like many potteries of the time, cultural appropriation was not considered and some were hand decorated with Aboriginal motifs or flowers and marked “Cula” either painted or inscribed.  Unusually, these ramekins have an offset base that makes them sit on an angle.