Mizuno Pottery Mark Query

by Dari

Mizuno Pottery Mark Query:- I have a 5pc coffee server set with a blue 4 tier crown and the name Y. Mizuno below that and have had no luck with finding anything out on this. Please help me or at least show me where I need to search.

Thanks,

Dari

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Reply by Peter (admin)

to Mizuno Pottery Mark Query

Dear Dari

Interesting query. One in a thousand. Please submit some photos. Use a new form for each new photo. I appreciate it. Thanks.

Whoever Y. Mizuno is not known by me or by any of my reference books or by Google. I suspect if this is a real person, they are an artist or designer known in another field like art or design, or some technical field, rather than pottery and they are based in a country like Japan which cannot be Googled due to having Japanese fonts.

However, this seemingly undocumented name caught my interest, so I began an uber-search. The detective won through and started down an interesting path where I started to learn lots. That's the type of query I like.

I found only one other connection with the name Mizuno within china and ceramics ranges and this really got me to an interesting place I feel we should all know and talk about. So thanks for flagging this up.

In the 1980's and 90's there was a fine china design team called Swid Powell. This was the team of Nancy Swid and Addie Powell. They produced high design expensive fine china collections amongst other things. They were a small producer but high in design & production values - and expensive.


All this smacks of one thing to me .......

COLLECTIBILITY FOR THE FUTURE!!!

Swid Powell designed with famous luminaries such as Calvin Klein (and many more) and exhibited at Yale University. They were commissioned by swanky Miami Hotels and are obviously well thought of in a 'glamorous' up-market sense.

Now, I found one set of their china marked Swid Powell, "Rady & Mizuno", Japan. I could find nothing else with either "Rady & Mizuno", or Mizuno on its own or Rady on its own. It may be that Y. Mizuno is a well known modernist Japanese designer or artist of some sort - Obviously Google can't spider Japanese characters so the name Mizuno, could be written in Japanese a million times and I wouldn't know.

I would carry on your research from here - you may have something rare, of high quality and which might become more and more valuable if it is the same Mizuno who is associated with Swid Powell.

Remember, folks, you read it here first!!

Best regards

Peter (admin)

p.s. The following page is a 'must see' if you are researching fine china - for value and identification:-

Researching the identity and value of antique and vintage fine china.

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