Edmund de Waal mug for Maggie's

Celebrated artist, potter and writer Edmund de Waal CBE has created a special edition bone china mug to mark 30 years of national cancer support charity, Maggie's. Made in collaboration with Duchess China, established in 1888 in Stoke-on-Trent, the last historic fine bone china pottery in the United Kingdom. The project in the artist's words:

"This is a deeply personal coming together of things – poetry and pottery – to celebrate Maggie's, a place where profound conversations and support happen day by day, around the kitchen table over a cup of tea".

Skilled artisans at Duchess have used enamel decal printing and hand-decorating techniques to carry out Edmund's design, with selected lines from 1981 poem 'alphabet', by Inger Christensen, written in graphite on a light-grey ground, overlaid with ink wash and gilding. 

...early fall exists; aftertaste, afterthought;

seclusion and angels exist;

widows and elk exist; every

detail exists; memory, memory's light;

afterglow exists; oaks, elms,

junipers, sameness, loneliness exist;

eider ducks, spiders, and vinegar

exist, and the future, the future...

Each mug from the first firing of this special edition comes in a beautiful presentation box with a description of its creation, signed by the artist. 

Take a closer look at the creative process:

Sold exclusively by the V&A.

Supported by the Miel de Botton Charitable Trust.

Please note fine bone china is only available for shipping within the UK.

Studio photography: Figure Film