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60 North Street, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 1NB
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tel: 01243 788633
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Portmerion was founded by Susan Williams-Ellis, who was born in 1918 but sadly
passed away in 2007.
Always at the forefront of contemporary design, Susan Williams Ellis was known
for her originality both in design and manufacturing techniques, which led to
her enviable reputation for ceramic shape design, and the creation of trend
setting patterns that had popular worldwide appeal, designs that are now seen
as iconic statements of 1960's & 1970's ceramic design.
Susan's early Portmeirion designs include Malachite (1960) and Moss Agate
(1961). Neither were produced in large quantities but received high critical
acclaim. Her next designs featured unusually bright, floral images (Portmeirion
Rose and Tiger Lily), which were then followed by the iconic Totem design in
1963.
With an established reputation of innovative design, Susan, along with her
husband, eminent economist Euan Cooper-Willis, developed the Portmeirion
Potteries business to become a highly successful company, with designs such as
Magic City and Magic Garden illustrating Susan's design philosophy of "good
design is good business".
With nearly fifty years of creativity, Susan Williams Ellis's contribution to
British design style, Portmeirion Potteries and the British ceramics industry
was immeasurable, and places her firmly in the company of a small group of
great and celebrated 20th Century ceramic designers. Her philosophy will
continue to permeate Portmeirion's design values and to determine the success
of the company that she created in the challenges of the 21st century.