History:
The Charity:
The Charity was formed by a Trust Deed dated 6th April 1988, and then registered in May 1988. This followed the death of Mrs Gwendoline Wylde, and a bequest from her estate provided the endowment funding to enable the Charity to be created.
Both Mrs Wylde, and her husband, who had predeceased her, lived locally, and wished to help the Community in the Kinver and Stourbridge areas in particular. They lived in Kinver, and we can find records of at least two houses they occupied, the North Lodge, and the Iron House.
Since its inception, the Trustees have tried to help suitable applications from both Dudley and within Staffordshire, while particularly favouring the areas of Kinver and Stourbridge.
Mr Tony Wylde:
We have looked into the background of Mr J A Wylde (known as Tony), and he spent a large part of his life, from 1924, in the Black Country, involved in ornamental work, iron work, foundry work, and structural engineering. He was a keen amateur artist, and used to send out cards at Christmas with black and white line drawings he had done himself.
We found references to the fact that he was a director of the Hale Foundry Company, and was involved in iron foundry work. We subsequently found a reference to a book he wrote in 1947 "Hale Malleable Cast Iron Handbook", by J A Wylde, a copy of which was on sale on the Americam website of Amazon in November 2014 ($25).
He was very interested in the process of vitreous enamelling, and was involved in the revival of the Bilston enamel trade.
Early references to him:
He worked for Hale & Hale, which was a foundry company involved in a number of areas, including the supply of enamelled stoves and pipework. The brief report below, taken from the Glasgow Herald, covers company activities in 1954, and mentions the formation of a new division called Hale Enamellers, specifically to supply their own enamelling needs, as well as looking at other potential opportunities. The second report, in section 6060 in the bottom right hand corner of the page, sadly details the final demise of Hale Enamellers in 1977, although by then, Tony Wylde had long since retired.
The Charity was formed by a Trust Deed dated 6th April 1988, and then registered in May 1988. This followed the death of Mrs Gwendoline Wylde, and a bequest from her estate provided the endowment funding to enable the Charity to be created.
Both Mrs Wylde, and her husband, who had predeceased her, lived locally, and wished to help the Community in the Kinver and Stourbridge areas in particular. They lived in Kinver, and we can find records of at least two houses they occupied, the North Lodge, and the Iron House.
Since its inception, the Trustees have tried to help suitable applications from both Dudley and within Staffordshire, while particularly favouring the areas of Kinver and Stourbridge.
Mr Tony Wylde:
We have looked into the background of Mr J A Wylde (known as Tony), and he spent a large part of his life, from 1924, in the Black Country, involved in ornamental work, iron work, foundry work, and structural engineering. He was a keen amateur artist, and used to send out cards at Christmas with black and white line drawings he had done himself.
We found references to the fact that he was a director of the Hale Foundry Company, and was involved in iron foundry work. We subsequently found a reference to a book he wrote in 1947 "Hale Malleable Cast Iron Handbook", by J A Wylde, a copy of which was on sale on the Americam website of Amazon in November 2014 ($25).
He was very interested in the process of vitreous enamelling, and was involved in the revival of the Bilston enamel trade.
Early references to him:
He worked for Hale & Hale, which was a foundry company involved in a number of areas, including the supply of enamelled stoves and pipework. The brief report below, taken from the Glasgow Herald, covers company activities in 1954, and mentions the formation of a new division called Hale Enamellers, specifically to supply their own enamelling needs, as well as looking at other potential opportunities. The second report, in section 6060 in the bottom right hand corner of the page, sadly details the final demise of Hale Enamellers in 1977, although by then, Tony Wylde had long since retired.
J A Wylde was listed as a Director of Hale Enamellers in 1954, but we have not, as yet, found any information relating to the reasons for its later demise, after his retirement.
A number of articles on the enamelling industry have been written and published in the Black Country Bugle, and we have been given kind permission to reproduce an article posted on the 20.01.2014, which includes a photograph of Tony, and some of his work:
A number of articles on the enamelling industry have been written and published in the Black Country Bugle, and we have been given kind permission to reproduce an article posted on the 20.01.2014, which includes a photograph of Tony, and some of his work:
The article from the Black Country Bugle is reproduced below (following their kind permission):
ENAMELLING was a craft that came to the fore in the 18th century and here in the Black Country there is clear evidence of the trade's existence in Bilston well before 1750.
The art form spread to Wolverhampton, Wednesfield and Birmingham, but because of Bilston's early associations with the craft the pieces made in the region are generally known as "Bilston enamels".
While craftsmen in Bilston enamelled the boxes and other trinkets, such as clock faces and scent bottles, others in the town made the items that were to be enamelled and engraved and the plates from which transfers for enamelling were made.
The main period for the production of these enamels was roughly 1760 to 1790, during which time most, if not all, of the workshops in the Bilston area were small scale family-run businesses in which women played an equally important role to men.
But, eventually, enamelling on an industrial scale caused the hand-made decorative enamelling to decline.
In response to an article that the Bugle ran about Tony Wylde of Kinver, Chris Robinson sent us the following email.
"My wife's grandmother, Mrs Elsie Powell, knew Tony very well and the attached picture is from one of three plaques she was lucky enough to have that were made by Tony at his studio. It is hard to believe it is enamel and not a painting."
In 1979 Tony gave an interview to the County Express, and Chris has sent us a transcript from which we have taken the following extract.
"Reviving the lost Black Country art of Bilston enamel, Tony Wylde of Kinver is pursuing this art form from his own private studio. In 1967 Tony and friends at Bilston decided to renew the craft that had become an abandoned skill after its decline in 1837. The work is produced with the aid of transfer printing, the colours being introduced by hand painting. Some of the pieces are highly attractive, but it is age that lends the special charm to the old Bilston enamels."
"Tony Wylde has spent some 50 years in the Black Country, from 1924, in various branches of what he calls Black Country engineering, starting with ornamental work, iron work, foundry work and structural engineering. He told us, 'Before retiring I became interested in the process of vitreous enamelling from the decorative point of view, and upon retiring I joined some friends in Bilston who specialised in the production of frit and assisted in the revival of the old Bilston enamel trade for several years."
"In 1973 Tony Wylde presented to the Queen a large enamel box he had fashioned commemorating the Queen's visit to Shugborough, and presented a similar one featuring Shugborough Hall as a wedding present from the staff to Lord Lichfield."
Read more: http://www.blackcountrybugle.co.uk/champion-enameller-s-lost-art/story-20478181-detail/story.html#ixzz3KO9EuPOK
Follow us: @BCBugle on Twitter | BCBugle on Facebook
ENAMELLING was a craft that came to the fore in the 18th century and here in the Black Country there is clear evidence of the trade's existence in Bilston well before 1750.
The art form spread to Wolverhampton, Wednesfield and Birmingham, but because of Bilston's early associations with the craft the pieces made in the region are generally known as "Bilston enamels".
While craftsmen in Bilston enamelled the boxes and other trinkets, such as clock faces and scent bottles, others in the town made the items that were to be enamelled and engraved and the plates from which transfers for enamelling were made.
The main period for the production of these enamels was roughly 1760 to 1790, during which time most, if not all, of the workshops in the Bilston area were small scale family-run businesses in which women played an equally important role to men.
But, eventually, enamelling on an industrial scale caused the hand-made decorative enamelling to decline.
In response to an article that the Bugle ran about Tony Wylde of Kinver, Chris Robinson sent us the following email.
"My wife's grandmother, Mrs Elsie Powell, knew Tony very well and the attached picture is from one of three plaques she was lucky enough to have that were made by Tony at his studio. It is hard to believe it is enamel and not a painting."
In 1979 Tony gave an interview to the County Express, and Chris has sent us a transcript from which we have taken the following extract.
"Reviving the lost Black Country art of Bilston enamel, Tony Wylde of Kinver is pursuing this art form from his own private studio. In 1967 Tony and friends at Bilston decided to renew the craft that had become an abandoned skill after its decline in 1837. The work is produced with the aid of transfer printing, the colours being introduced by hand painting. Some of the pieces are highly attractive, but it is age that lends the special charm to the old Bilston enamels."
"Tony Wylde has spent some 50 years in the Black Country, from 1924, in various branches of what he calls Black Country engineering, starting with ornamental work, iron work, foundry work and structural engineering. He told us, 'Before retiring I became interested in the process of vitreous enamelling from the decorative point of view, and upon retiring I joined some friends in Bilston who specialised in the production of frit and assisted in the revival of the old Bilston enamel trade for several years."
"In 1973 Tony Wylde presented to the Queen a large enamel box he had fashioned commemorating the Queen's visit to Shugborough, and presented a similar one featuring Shugborough Hall as a wedding present from the staff to Lord Lichfield."
Read more: http://www.blackcountrybugle.co.uk/champion-enameller-s-lost-art/story-20478181-detail/story.html#ixzz3KO9EuPOK
Follow us: @BCBugle on Twitter | BCBugle on Facebook
Further examples of his Artwork:
The current owners of the Iron House discovered two large enamel paintings, both signed by Mr J A Wylde, in their cellar, and these are shown below:
The current owners of the Iron House discovered two large enamel paintings, both signed by Mr J A Wylde, in their cellar, and these are shown below:
Below are more examples of his work, seen on sale on E-bay
On the left is an enamelled trinket box (Bilston and Battersea) showing Tettenhall Church, on the right is another trinket box showing Norwich Cathedral (again Bilston and Battersea), and in the centre is an example of his picture postcard work, this card being a view of Upper Arley Church.
So, what happened to Bilston Enamel manufacture?:
As the article from the Black Country Bugle details, production of enamel work, particularly boxes was very active in the mid 1700's. There are various reports of how the industry started, but in 1720, a man called Dovey Hawksford, who is said to have started as a toymaker, started to produce enamel boxes. He died in 1749, but those he had trained carried on the work, and with the collapse of the Battersea enamel factory in around 1750, further talented artists and workers came to the West Midlands. By the 1820's, fashions were changing, and the business eventually died out.
Tony Wylde was involved in the revival of Bilston and Battersea Enamels in 1967, which grew to export decorative boxes around the world. The company became part of Enesco Europe, and, sadly, in April 2010, the business was closed, as the managing director of Enesco Europe stated at that time: "Unfortunately, the recent poor economic climate has not allowed us to create a business model that fits into the global business".
The company was based at the Etruria Way studio in Bilston, and closed with the loss of 15 jobs.
With Tony Wylde having long since passed away, it would appear that we shall have to wait for another highly talented visionary for the second revival of this highly skilled industry.
We hope you have found the background to the life and work of Tony Wylde interesting, and he clearly contributed greatly to reviving some of the lost skills of the Black Country.