White tin-glazed side plate

The Omega Workshops sold homewares designed and made by artists. It was established in London by Roger Fry, in association with younger artists in the Bloomsbury Group, Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant. The Omega sought to bring avant-garde art into British homes and provide regular paid work for struggling artists. Opened on the eve of the First World War, it soon became a centre for pacifist resistance, holding concerts, publishing books and celebrating international artistic collaboration. One of the Omega’s specialities was ceramics.

At first, artists painted directly onto commercially manufactured plates. Soon, Fry learned to make his own ceramics, and became passionate about producing strikingly simple white and black tableware. Monochrome dishes were insistently modern — visually offsetting the boldly colourful Omega patterns seen on furniture and textiles.