The Radical Potter: The Life and Times of Josiah Wedgwood
by Tristram Hunt (2021, Metropolitan Books)
You probably recognize the iconic chalky blue background
with white frosting decorations of Wedgwood’s most famous pottery. But who
knew that Josiah Wedgwood himself was an iconoclast of 18th Century marketing
and manufacture? In Tristram Hunt’s new biography, The Radical Potter, he
looks deep into The Life and Times of Josiah Wedgwood and it is a fascinating
story.
The 1700s was an exciting era for ideas and industry and
Wedgwood was in the center of both. He was a leader of the Industrial
Revolution, advocating a system of canals for shipping and using advances in
chemistry to grow his small, artisan pottery business into the first major
English pottery factory. He was a marketing innovator, introducing ideas such
as direct mail and illustrated catalogues, money back guarantees, and promotions
like free delivery and buy one get one free. Hunt also explores how Wedgwood’s
business advancements fit with the economic and political ideas of the times, particularly
the ideas of Adam Smith and David Hume.
Probably the most interesting chapter in the book is the one
titled “The Subject of Freedom” in which Hunt examines Wedgwood’s support of
the American Revolution, the influence of the French Revolution on his
thinking, and his strong stance in favor of the abolition of slavery. His
factory mass-produced and distributed an anti-slavery medallion with the
slogan, “Am I Not a Man and a Brother?” that brought great awareness to the
abolitionist cause in Britain and America.
Hunt relies on Wedgwood archive materials, including business
records and correspondence, to tell the story of Josiah Wedgwood. For readers
with an interest in the Industrial Revolution or the history of pottery, The
Radical Potter is a must-read biography of the man who profoundly changed
how we work and live.
NOTES
Author Tristram Hunt is a historian and the director of the
Victoria and Albert Museum. His “Epilogue” in The Radical Potter covers
the sad decline of the Wedgwood company in the 21st Century and the faint glimmer of hope for the future.
I got my ARC copy of The Radical Potter from the Early Reviewer program at LibraryThing.