The Art of Advent: Day Fifteen
By Elle Borissow
With just ten days left until Christmas, perhaps this could be that special last-minute gift you are searching for – collectible and classic; the annual Royal Copenhagen Christmas Plate is as practical as it is decorative. Whether marking this year as particularly special or cherishing a fond memory of the past via the wonderful world of second-hand, these make for beautifully sentimental art-objects to treasure in your home.
First launched in 1908, each year Royal Copenhagen produces a new Christmas themed design in porcelain to honour the year drawing to a close, presenting collectors with an opportunity to add to, or begin, their nostalgic displays.
Now widely available online, the original idea for these charmingly festive compositions is thought to have originated from the 1888 Nordic Industrial, Agricultural and Arts Exhibition held in Tivoli Gardens. For this special event, the Royal Danish Porcelain Factory produced a line of hand painted plates displayed as an illustration of their delicate craftsmanship, whereupon the Crown Princess Louise of Denmark wished to purchase one to mark the occasion.
Upon such large demand for repeats in response to her purchase of the limited designs, Frans August Hallin developed a new relief carving technique at the porcelain factory, the method enabling many repetitions through use of spray painting instead atop the relief cast porcelain surface. This relief structure gives the plates a glossy corrugated surface, alluding depth and adding a somewhat sculptural quality to their characteristic royal blue monochrome.
When Hallin left the factory, it was the combination of his innovative relief technique with Harold Bing’s idea for a bespoke annual design addition which resulted in the decorative Danish Christmas plate tradition we know today. The first design line originating at Bing & Grøndahl in 1895, followed by Royal Copenhagen’s version from 1908 – and now, the two versions are produced and sold in continuation of each series following their merging in 1987, sharing their “passion for blue since 1775.”
Royal Copenhagen Christmas Plate, 1929.
This article is in honour of my lovely Danish Great-Grandmother, Gudrun Carla, who left us her small collection of Christmas plates. The one included here features a ‘Jul’ [Christmas] design from 1929, marking the year she married. Displayed in their home all her life, and in ours as long as I can remember, my favourite has always been this beautiful cathedral design with its ribbons intertwining into the crisp star-scattered night sky.
Bibliography:
Royal Copenhagen. “ A TIME-HONOURED TRADITION FOR GIFT GIVERS AND COLLECTORS”. Date Accessed: 15th December 2023. https://www.royalcopenhagen.com/en-gb/our-legacy/our-history/christmas-plates-through-the-years