About this objectA Della Robbia white earthenware panel that is moulded in relief with the figures of a crouching angel holding a standing child with a pattern leaf. They are all looking to the right on a blue background.
Ellen Mary Rope was born into an artistically talented family and attended the Slade School of Art in 1877. She would go on to exhibit at the Royal Academy and was held in high esteem by contemporary journalists, having pieces written about her for magazines such as The Studio. She specialised in sculpture and moulding, and spent most of her career working as a sculptor in London. She contributed to the pottery by sending designs for plaques. They were typically in the Arts and Crafts style, focusing on scenes of children and angels which represent innocence in a classical and allegorical way. She remained unmarried, living with her nieces as an 'artist of her own accord', and when she passed away, she left her estate to them.
This piece demonstrates the artist's sculptural skills in being able to create a detailed scene of two figures in moulded clay. It has influences from the Italian Della Robbia with the cream and blue colour scheme, as well as the subject of a child and angel having religious allusions. Rope's style is to focus on depictions of children. In this she creates the sense of guidance with the angel acting as a guardian, lifting the child's shoulders upwards as they both gaze to the right, as if towards a brighter future.Â
