This is a demitasse cup from the rare Payu series from Finland's leading pottery manufacturer ARABIA. The series name Payu means "willow" in Finnish. It is not a Japanese willow tree, but a pussy willow tree, and it is known in Northern Europe as a symbolic plant that heralds the change of seasons because it blooms in early spring.
The basic form follows the shape of a cup and saucer called the ND model of ARABIA's representative hand-painted tableware Valencia. Valencia was designed by Ulla Procope in 1961 and is a timeless masterpiece that has the most antique fans among the ARABIA products.
The surface decoration of Payu is painted with two colors of blue: ultramarine blue and sky blue. In Japanese terms, this work expresses the "bright green of fresh greenery."
The exact production period for Payu is unknown, but it was only produced for a few years around 1970. ARABIA's production system changed significantly after the oil crisis of 1973-1974. Production of the hand-painted tableware that used to be expensive and time-consuming has been discontinued across the board. It is thought that production of Payu was discontinued soon after it was released as a new series. Winqvist, who invented the decoration, also left ARABIA in 1974.
The initials of Anja Jaatinen Winqvist are engraved on the back of the cup and saucer. The artist's initials are signed on the right side, separated by slashes.
■Detailed specifications
Manufacturer: ARABIA / Arabia form design: Ulla Procope / Ulla Procope pattern design: Anja Jaatinen-Winquist / Anja Jaatinen Winquist Series name: Paju / Paju year: 1969-1973 (estimated)
Country of origin: Finland Condition: ★★★★☆ (4.5: Very good condition)
This is an unused dead stock item, but you can see where the glaze has popped at the base of the handle. Since the main body itself is an unused item, the scratches are not caused by use, but are caused by firing in the kiln during the manufacturing process.
■Size
Diameter 7.5cm Height 4.8cm Saucer diameter 11.3cm
Ulla Procope
Ulla Procope (1921-1968)
Born in Helsinki. In 1948 , he graduated from the Faculty of Art and Design at Aalto University in Helsinki and joined Arabia Company. After that, he was in charge of design in the production department for 20 years, creating the Ruska series in 1960 and the Valencia series in 1961 . Ruska became the longest-running and most sold flagship product of Arabia's products, and the form of Ruska was called the S model , which became the prototype model for subsequent ARABIA tableware. Valencia is the last hand-painted ARABIA product. After suffering from cancer and retiring from active duty, Procope moved to Spain's Canary Islands, where he died at the age of 47 .