Plate - "New Jersey Arms" c. 1936

This "New Jersey Arms" plate, by Helmut Hiatt, is an octagonal form with transfer printed decoration. The monochromatic palette speaks to a deep understanding of how even limited color can convey so much. It's a reminder that artmaking is a process of ongoing discovery, even in what might seem like a simple design. Looking closely, you see how Hiatt has layered the floral designs around the edge. Each flower and leaf seems carefully placed, with varying tones of grey suggesting depth and texture. The central image is more illustrative, framed like a classical scene or allegory. The details here are finer, the lines more precise, as though a different tool was used. What I love most is the contrast between the decorative border and the central scene. It’s like Hiatt is playing with different ways of seeing, inviting us to consider the relationship between ornament and narrative. It's an interesting conversation with earlier Staffordshire pottery, but with a 20th century sensibility. And isn't art always a conversation, across time, across ideas? Embracing ambiguity, inviting multiple interpretations, refusing to be pinned down.