Some mid-1970s Pieces
The photographs in this post were sent to me by a woman who bought them from Tom and Mary in the mid-1970s. By that time, they had run out of easily accessible driftwood to mount their creations on, so they offered to exchange work for driftwood. Some of Tom and Mary’s customers had boats and they supplied quite a bit of driftwood for the pieces that were made. Some of these pieces were mounted on driftwood obtained that way.
This flower piece was made by Mary and it is a bit of a puzzle because all of the flower plaques that I know of were glazed in pinks and yellows. This one, which appears to be of sunflowers, is blue. I have no idea why. Perhaps the owner will remember.
The flowers are mounted on a slab of cypress, which came from a small sawmill that was located north of Ochopee, Florida.
This little piece was also made by Mary and is mounted on a beautiful piece of driftwood.
It doesn’t have an “mb” button, but it may have originally. The wood is pretty fragile, so it may have come off.
Tom was famous for his pelicans – he mounted them in whimsical poses, sometimes with fishing poles. This small piece features two pelicans sitting on pilings, which are actually pieces of a lobster trap.
The 1970s was the era of women’s liberation and there were a lot of books published about liberated women. This character plaque was Tom’s humorous response:
As was always the case, the character was made by Tom and the glazing, such as it is, was done by Mary.
I saved the this photograph for last, because there is an interesting story behind it. It was auctioned off at the South Dade High School Reunion in Madison, Florida this past March to help raise scholarship funds for students. It was owned by Marjorie Flowers, who was my second grade teacher at Neva King Cooper Elementary School. Marjorie’s husband, Bud, was the butcher at the A&P grocery store on South Krome Avenue. Carl Pelt and Son’s tire business now occupies the building. Marjorie’s daughter, Janice, donated the plaque and it now has a new and happy owner!
It does not have an “mb” button, which tells me that it is probably a late 1960s piece. Compared to Tom’s later owls, the glazes on this one are not as dramatic as his later pieces. It is an interesting piece to study because it shows how his glazes developed over time.
I have 20-30 early pieces such as the pelican, lion, etc. Looking to sell reasonable or charitable contribution. Let me know if you have any interest or suggestions.
May be interested in what you have for sale, please contact me via my email, hope you have some pictures..
I am thinking of selling the entire lot of 24-25 pieces. Let me know your interest.
Leon, I don’t think anyone who knows about this site is in a position to buy the entire lot. I could be wrong, though. Please send us an itemized list of what you are offering to sell and the prices you asking.
I’ll take the photos in the next week or so and send them to you. Its a project that will take time. I’m thinking of $1250 for all of the pieces; let me know your thoughts. Leon
Yes I would be interested, my email is rcjt23@yahoo.com thank you
I would be interested in another piece or two. Please let me know what you might have. Thank you.
please contact me @ pbneafsey@gmail.com regarding the pieces you want to sell
My sister and I bought these in the 60s; we collect folk art. Tried e-Bay and no interest so will just hang loose but I will send you the pix soon. Thanks again.
After going through the Gallery photos, I would say that Tom Blakley did my piece, it is similar to the red clay piece with no glaze on it.
I purchased one in South Daytona, Fl. SEAGULLS, 12 Tiles. Don’t know what year, but it is awesome. Thanks for your great eye for color & style
We have several pieces and I just love them. They live in our yard. We just moved & I can send at least one pic of my 6’ sunflowers which were mounting onto the outside of my “she shed” tomorrow:-) I loved them both do much.Just wonderful. We have at least 4-5 large pieces that are one of a kind, made just for us:) Circa 80’s!