Tableau, Charioteer and Lightning Bolt (Tableau met wagenmenner en bliksemschicht)

About this artwork.

It says on the tableau: “Presented to the staff of the GEB.” The lightning bolt undoubtedly refers to the electricity company that used to call this building its home.

In the post-war period, ceramicist Anno Smith created hundreds of porch and facade pieces for the city of Groningen, intended for residential complexes, schools, shops and factories, among other things – it’s not for nothing that Smith is known as the “greatest decorator”. 

Smith mainly depicted everyday objects and scenes: fish, flowers, playing children and working craftspeople. By decorating the severe, strict and uniform architecture that is so typical of the post-war period with individually designed pieces, each building was afforded an identity of its own; an identity that also immediately marks these pieces as Smith’s. His clients also wanted cheerful performances that had to be understandable for the residents.

Facts & Figures.

• Design
  Anno Smith

• District
  Centrum

• Art type
  Art in / on a building, Tableau

• Material
  Glazed terracotta

• Dimensions
  h 0,75 x b 0,75 m