posted 07-04-2012 04:26 PM            

John, Peter, Janet Prip - A Family of smiths

posted 07-04-2012 05:18 PM            

John Prip, Master Metalsmith

posted 07-04-2012 05:36 PM            

That catalog is great... Thanks so much.

posted 07-04-2012 06:27 PM            

Emailed you on the 2010 article, but here's a short one with pics, from the Society of American Silversmiths: John A. Prip

And a nice eulogy from Jeff Herman, when Prip passed away in 2009:

quote:

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4-8-2009 John Axel Prip 1922-2009
(about halfway down)

4/8/2009: John Axel Prip (1922-2009)
Jack Prip, a good friend, phenomenal silversmith, and respected teacher, died today in Cranston, Rhode Island. He was 86.

Prip was a master metalsmith known for setting standards of excellence in American metalsmithing. His works and designs have become famous for bringing the formal, technical tradition of Danish design into harmony with the American desire for innovation. Several of his designs for the Reed and Barton Company are still in production today.

Prip was born in New York to a Danish father and an American mother. As a child, he moved to Denmark with his family, where his father ran a silversmithing factory that had been his grandfather's. At 15, Prip began an apprenticeship while attending high school. The next five years were spent polishing stakes, sweeping up, and laboriously reproducing classical renderings. The experience taught diligence and a deeply rooted technical skill, but simultaneously imposed a restricted aesthetic. In a way it was the unlearning of these traditional forms and procedures that pushed the young silversmith into bold experiments and motivated the innovations that distinguished his career.

In 1948, Prip returned to the United States with his wife, Karen, and infant son, Peter. He came over on the same boat with a woodworker named Tage Frid, who was to become a lifelong colleague and friend. They had both been invited to teach at a new school in Alfred, New York, called the School for American Craftsmen. At the time, there were few places to study and limited knowledge of metalsmithing techniques in the United States. Prip's position was unique: his Danish training provided him with firm technical grounding, while his American environment encouraged the attitude of exploration and innovation that became a hallmark of his career.

When the school moved to the Rochester Institute of Technology two years later, Jack and his family, which now included daughter Janet, moved along with it. It was during this time in the early '50s that Prip and the crafts movement were eagerly searching for their own style. Along with Frans Wildenhain, Tage Frid, Ronald Pearson, and others, Prip established a gallery in Rochester called Shop One. This gallery was a unique institution in its time, providing not only a business venture originated and managed by craftsmen, but also a forum for the presentation of top quality avant-garde craftwork. Its mission was to educate the public to the special beauty of handmade objects.

In 1957, after three years with Shop One, Prip again felt the need to move on. Through some fortunate connections he was hired by Reed and Barton Company, a holloware and flatware manufacturer in Massachusetts. The title invented for the role he conceived was Artist-Craftsman-Residence. He was given a workspace, materials, and access to the 900-worker factory. It was understood that Prip had a responsibility to address himself to work that might eventually profit the company, but beyond that guidance no restrictions were imposed. Prip was to stay at Reed and Barton for three years. One indication of his success there is the fact that 20 years later several of his designs are still in production.

Prip returned to teaching at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and after three years went to the Rhode Island School of Design, where he would teach until 1981.

His one-man show at the Rhode Island School of Design in 1987, gave me a new appreciation for his work. Each piece was crafted to the point of absolute perfection. I remember finding it difficult to stop staring at such beautiful objects, even trying to locate that elusive solder joint pinhole. . . it never appeared! The holloware and flatware were raised, forged, and fabricated to stand the test of time. Many of the pieces in the exhibit were technically complex, with finishes ranging from smoothly polished to heavily organic. Prip's command of every material he handled–whether silver, bronze, pewter, precious stones, bone, glass, or granite–was obvious. Most of the sculptural objects were so whimsical that his utilitarian holloware and flatware looked to be conceived by a different artist.

Prip's aesthetic and impeccable craftsmanship are a testament to his love of silver and any other material he touched. His technical prowess enabled him to produce anything he envisioned. He often spoke fondly of his time in Denmark, his years teaching at RIT and RISD, and the artistic freedom he had at Reed and Barton. As Jack Prip spent his twilight years in the home he shared with his wife, Judy Skoogfors Prip, I hope he realized the tremendous impact he had on his students and the field of silversmithing.

Condolences can be sent to Judy Skoogfors Prip, 75 Fort Ave. Cranston, RI 02905.

What a incredible loss to the silver world. Jeffrey Herman, SAS Executive Director

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posted 07-04-2012 08:34 PM            

6 page PDF, more Prip:

John Prip/Metal, 1972

66 page PDF, lots of cool stuff, including Prip's 1961 Dimension flatware pattern for Reed & Barton:

For the Tabletop, 1980

38 page PDF, includes Prip's Onion teapot:

Forms in Metal, 275 Years of Metalsmithing in America, 1975

4 page PDF, on Prip's good friend:

Olaf Skoogfors, Jewelry, 1968

23 page PDF, various metal objects, jurored by Prip:

Goldsmith '70, 1970

posted 07-05-2012 08:57 PM            

Prip designed several pieces for Reed & Barton and was "craftsman-in-residence" from 1957-60, then serving as a consultant until 1970. In addition to a number of holloware designs in pewter, sterling and silverplate, he also designed sterling flatware. Lark was introduced in 1960, and Star was introduced at the same time, but according to Jewel Stern's Modernism in American Silver (2005), "Prip did not endorse the the embellishment of Lark with motifs to become Star, a decision imposed by management to broaden its appeal." Have to say that I'd agree with his feelings - and wonder if he had much to do with the release of Cellini and Da Vinci in 1967, essentially Lark and his 1961 Dimension pattern, with a cross-hatch/Florentine texture, available with optional engraving (to my eye, not particularly attractive). The somewhat unusually oriented Dimension knife handle was issued 1960 patent D187589, and the pattern was also adapted for silverplate flatware that R&B produced for Eastern Airlines.

My personal favorite is Tapestry, introduced in 1964 - simple elegant form, with an intricate, almost 'Shiebleresque' decoration. Have also seen the 1967 Diadem pattern attributed to Prip, but find little mention of it in references.

~Cheryl

posted 07-05-2012 09:57 PM            

1961 ad - the red Triangular Dish was one of Prip's designs:

~Cheryl

posted 07-05-2012 11:43 PM            

Caddy spoon with Vikings playing lurer, long ship in bowl; the design was also made by another Copenhagen silverplate manufacturer, Madsen & T. Baagøes (somewhere, I have a small server and a bottle opener too, at least one by M&TB). Rainwater's Spoons Around the World shows this design with yet another mark, a conjoined VM/MV-in-circle.

Jam spoon with touches of enamel, the horse-drawn plough, windmill and wheat make me suspect it might be a souvenir of the Danish Agricultural Museum.

Caddy spoon with a nicely executed pair of long ships - this one also appears in the Rainwater book, with the same unknown manufacturer's mark as the lurer spoon.

Conjoined AP mark, with 'P' for Plet (silverplate):

~Cheryl

posted 07-06-2012 07:20 AM            

Thanks so much for sharing all this.
When I started reading the 07-05-2012 08:57 PM post June was walking by and noticed the first 4 patterns.... She too liked Tapestry best.

I think I share your beliefs, it does feel like a management/marketing design influence re:

• Lark -> Star -> Cellini
  
• Dimension -> Da Vinci

I don't see much of the 'Color-Glaze' holloware line these days. I wonder if it was not that popular or perhaps the enamel didn't hold up well being on the working side of the holloware?

Thanks for the A. Prip souvenir spoons post. I know very little about souvenir spoons but enjoy the insights you and other SSF members have shared about your souvenir spoon collecting. Also thanks for the image of the marks.

posted 07-15-2012 08:42 PM            

A few months ago I was able to purchase an almost complete set of the Dimension and have since added to it to make a service for eight. I love the knives since they have a "twist" where the handle meets the blade which is pretty cool. I don;t know how successful this style was since they also made a regular knife without the twist. The other pieces are nicely weighted and feel great in the hand. I have since been a convert to Prip designs and would love to have the Dimension tea/coffee service.

I remember reading somewhere that he had a role in the design of R&B's Diamond pattern which most think of as being designed by Gio Ponti.

He also designed a silverplated casserole for R&B in the early 80's which is very nice looking.

The Color-Glaze line was pretty popular and there are many pieces to be found in shops, the web and on that big auction site. Color seems to be the biggest concern for collectors with lavender/purple considered the best (or at least the hardest to find). Quite a number of mid-century collectors use these pieces to enhance their collection of furniture and other items. While not a mid-century collector per se, I do have a number of pieces by Russel Wright, Ben Seibel, George Sakier etc and have a few of the Color-Glaze pieces.

Ok that went way off topic!

posted 07-16-2012 12:28 AM            

Most of the major manufacturers made similar series after R&B's success - Wallace had Color-Clad, Oneida made Silver Hues, F.B. Rogers imported from Denmark, and Gorham/Newport, in addition to solid colors, made an interesting blue to red ombre finish. I once had a sweet little harlequin set of tiny sterling, with enamel interior, snifter-form cordials by Gorham. Some of the Towle enamels are just gorgeous, many a bit earlier than Color-Glaze, produced in sterling and silverplate.

John Prip was asked to design the Diamond coffee and tea services to coordinate with the flatware, which was designed by Gio Ponti and adapted for production by R&B staff designer Robert H. Ramp.

Have to say, Stern's Modernism in American Silver is a wonderful book for anyone interested in 20th century silver - and a great companion to Venable's Silver in America, 1840-1940.

posted 06-22-2018 03:56 PM            

Smithsonian
Oral history interview with
Ronald H. Pearson
1979 May 31,1981

posted 03-28-2019 04:37 PM            

~Cheryl

This A.Prip mark is also found on silverplate spoons, with 'PLATE' replacing 'STERLING':

Not sure what the symbol on the Prip-Pearson piece means - the last pic shows a bit different symbol found on a pair of cufflinks:

posted 06-21-2020 02:10 PM            

The patent for 'Vision':

~Cheryl