was launched in 1999. In 1993, 24-year-old Rachel Bishop joined the company as its senior designer. By claiming the original establishment of the Macintyre studio under William Moorcroft in 1897 as its own founding date, in 1997 Moorcroft celebrated its centenary. During 1998 it established a new Moorcroft Design Studio and employed several designers to extend the range of its products. Moorcroft Pottery Early in his employment at Macintyre's, William Moorcroft created designs for the company's Aurelian Ware range of high-Victorian pottery, which had transfer-printed and enamelled decoration in bold red, blue and gold colours. Introduced very soon afterwards, his art nouveau-influenced Florian Ware was decorated entirely by hand, with the design outlined in trailed slip using a technique known as tubelining. This technique has been used in almost all of Moorcroft's art pottery ever since, distinguishing it from mass-produced pottery. Both father and son also experimented with high-temperature flambé techniques, producing high glaze with vibrant colour. Later Walter Moorcroft designs reflect the simpler appearance preferred during his era. Moorcroft Design Studio patterns show strong influences from the founding days of William Moorcroft coupled with the advances in colouring techniques of more recent years. Aimed at the luxury end of the collector and gift markets, they are generally in the form of such products as display plates, vases, pin dishes, lamp-bases and jars of varying shape and size. Gallery See also Emma Bossons References Atterbury, P. Moorcroft, B. (1993) Moorcroft: A Guide to Moorcroft Pottery 1897–1993., Richard Dennis. Street, Fraser 'Moorcroft: A New Dawn' (2006). W M Publications. External links Official Website Art pottery Ceramics manufacturers of England Companies based in Stoke-on-Trent Design companies established in 1897 Staffordshire pottery Privately held companies of the United Kingdom 1897 establishments in England