Portland Vase

Makers have transformed the ancient technique of applied, molded, low-relief decoration by developing innovative materials. The Dionysiac figures on the beaker from Pergamon are clearly applied since they lift slightly from the vessel at their edges. British industrial ceramics pioneer Josiah Wedgwood developed an extraordinary palette of stoneware for contrasting appliqués, creating cameo effects popularized by his quintessential white-on-powder-blue ceramics. His celebrated reproduction of the famous ancient Roman cameo glass known as the Portland Vase is a technical triumph. London-based artist Hitomi Hosono apprenticed at the factory established by Wedgwood. By using a stronger clay, she liberated the appliqués from the surface so they appear to flutter inside her bowl.