The Design Greats In a new series, we profile some of the greatest designers to have graced the tableware industry with their talents. First up, Hermann Gretsch – the man who designed Form 1382 for Arzberg and Form 98 for Schönwald – both of which are still in production today…
The man, the myth,
the legend
Hermann Gretsch (1895-1950)
Form 1382 Blaublüten Architect, engineer, designer – Hermann Gretsch was a man for whom attention to miniscule detail was a way of life rather than a thing that must be done. Responsible for designing one of Arzberg’s longest-standing collections – Form 1382 (which is still in production today) – Hermann Gretsch also designed the 1937 Form 98 for Schönwald, which, remarkably, is also still in production. Born in 1895, Gretsch trained as an architect before studying ceramics at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Stuttgart under Bernhard Pankok, from 1922 to 1923. He completed a doctoral thesis on ‘technical features of South German fayence manufacture in 1928. In 1931 he became artistic adviser to Arzberg at the instigation of Fritz Kreikemeier, director of the factory, and Heinrich Schindhelm, 64 TABLEWARE INTERNATIONAL
representative of the Kahla Konzern, an association of five Bavarian porcelain factories. “Hermann Gretsch played a pioneering role in practical, managerial and advisory functions
“Alongside Wilhelm Wagenfeld, he was the most important German industrial designer. He was able to establish himself as a pioneer and protagonist of modern porcelain in the field of mass-produced
“It is interesting to note that Bernd Dibbern, who had an exceptionally good eye, sold this design in a wonderful range of colours for many years.” Robin Levien discussing a Gretsch-designed coffee set for Schönwold
in the realisation of the modern design of industrial products,” says Petra Werner, senior curator and head of the department of art and cultural history of porcelain, Staatliches Museum für Porzellan.
utility porcelain.” As a young designer, Robin Levien of Studio Levien, found himself inspired by a man who he describes as “one of the greatest form makers of the 20th century”.
Robin Levien on Hermann Gretsch “He was one of the giants of design whose shoulders I wanted to stand on. Gretsch’s idea about the longevity of good design is so incredibly relevant now, nearly 100 years later, as we grapple with global warming and climate change. I sometimes see the word “timeless” in a design brief and I always challenge this as all design is of its time. Dr Hermann Gretsch’s greatest achievement as a designer is that he has come close to producing timeless design.”