that time he was beginning what became a strong interest in ceramic design, leading him to work with several other companies. His work with Mintons continued for several decades, and although the Minton Archive has many designs certainly in his hand, other pieces in his style can only be attributed to him. Dresser had travelled to Japan, and in the 1870s produced a number of designs reflecting Japanese ceramics, catching the rising fashion for Japonism in all areas of design. He was also interested in what might be called the "Anglo-Oriental" style, evoking both Islamic and East Asian design, but without precisely following anything. On his death in 1858 Herbert Minton was succeeded by his equally dynamic nephew Colin Minton Campbell who had joined the partnership in 1849, with a 1/3 share. Herbert had decreased his involvement in day-to-day management in the years before his death. He took the company into a highly successful exploration of Chinese cloisonné enamels, Japanese lacquer and Turkish pottery. Eclectic revival styles The Franco-Prussian War of 1870 gave Arnoux the opportunity to recruit the modeller Marc-Louis Solon who had developed the technique of pâte-sur-pâte at Sèvres and brought it with him to Minton. In this process the design is built up in relief with layers of liquid slip, with each layer being allowed to dry before the next is applied. There was great demand for Solon's plaques and vases, featuring maidens and cherubs, and Minton assigned him apprentices to help the firm become the unrivaled leader in this field. Others introduced to Minton by Arnoux included the sculptor Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse and the painter Antoine Boullemier. In 1870 Mintons opened an art pottery studio in Kensington, London directed by William Stephen Coleman and encouraged both amateur and professional artists to become involved in pottery decoration and design. This might be in hand-painted plaques, or in producing designs to be replicated in larger quantities in the Stoke factory. When the studio was destroyed by fire in 1875, it was not rebuilt. Mid-Victorian painting, 1865-1880 Late Victorian and 20th century From the mid-1890s onwards, Mintons made major contributions to Art Nouveau ceramics with a fine range of slip-trailed majolica ware, many designed by Marc-Louis Solon's son Leon Solon and his colleague John Wadsworth. Leon Solon was hired by Mintons after his work was published in the hugely influential design magazine The Studio and he worked for the company