ASHTRAYS SO AESTHETICALLY PLEASING, I JUST MAY HAVE TO TAKE UP SMOKING.
PIC INFO: Resolution at 1416x1818 -- Spotlight on a brochure for Heath ashtrays, c. late 1950s. Courtesy of the Environmental Design Archives at UC Berkeley.
OVERVIEW: "One of the most popular Heath Ceramics pieces is credited to Brian Heath. Both Brian and Edith Heath were heavy smokers. Because Brian found it difficult to talk on the phone or take notes while smoking, he decided to design a solution.
Brian cut V-shaped notches on the side of a clay bowl drying on the rack. The notches helped hold the cigarettes in place. He also found that it could self-extinguish because of the tapering of the notch.
The item gained tremendous popularity, so much so that the city of Seattle named Brian’s design “safety ashtrays” and required them to be installed in every public building in the city. The design was so popular that at one point, the ashtrays were 25% of Heath Ceramics’ business."
-- ARTBOUND via PBS SoCal, c. May 2019
Featured glazes included:
Birch
Brownstone
Citrus
Desert Ochre
Gunmetal
Moss/Olive
Olive
Pebble Blue
Redwood
Sandlewood
Sea/Sand
Sienna
Spruce
Turquoise
White
White Stone
Source: www.pbssocal.org/kcet-originals/artbound/visual-timeline-making-classic-california-company-heath-ceramics.
