The potters Harry (1910-1986) and May (1914-1995) Davis combined great technical skill and precision with their gifts as as designers and decorators. Their tablewares are amongst the best in studio pottery, the result of a determination to experiment and produce a realistic and modern alternative to factory production that was durable and full of life. They worked initially at the Leach Pottery, but like Michael Cardew they were in no way imitative of Bernard's aesthetic. After a period in Ghana, they established Crowan Pottery in Cornwall in 1946 before moving on to New Zealand to continue their work, interspersed by several years in Peru.

They made elegant finely thrown and turned jugs, bowls and cups and saucers, some with engraved designs, but it was their rich lustrous resist decoration that was most memorable. Their work showed how practicality and beauty could be well combined.

David Whiting