An era in earthenware: Mr Willett’s Popular Pottery reopens

Beloved exhibition opens once again after more than two-year hiatus

One of Brighton Museum & Art Gallery’s most distinctive and much-loved permanent displays will reopen to visitors on Saturday 11 July, following more than two years of closure while essential roof restoration works were carried out to the gallery roof.

The reopening of Mr Willett’s Popular Pottery marks the return of one of the museum’s most unusual collections, bringing back into public view hundreds of fascinating ceramic objects collected by Brighton businessman, philanthropist and one of the museum’s founding fathers, Henry Willett (1823–1905).

Willett was an extraordinary collector whose tastes were as eclectic as they were eccentric. Rather than focusing on fine porcelain or luxury ceramics, as was the fashion at the time, he became fascinated by the pottery and everyday objects found in ordinary homes. Over several decades he amassed around 2,000 pieces dating from the 17th to the 19th centuries, believing they offered a unique insight into the lives, humour, fashions, politics and beliefs of the people who owned them.

His collection includes commemorative mugs, Toby jugs, figurines, teapots, tiles and decorative pottery celebrating royalty, military heroes, sporting achievements, literature, science and everyday life. Together they paint a vivid picture of Britain’s social history through the objects people treasured and used every day.

Museum founding father

Willett first lent part of his collection to Brighton Museum in the 1870s before bequeathing the entire collection to the museum on his death, ensuring future generations could enjoy and learn from his remarkable passion for popular pottery.
Much of the display is thanks to Stella Beddoe, Willett author and former Keeper of Decorative Art at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, who researched the collection and developed the gallery in 2001.
In 2023-2024, more than 150 objects from the collection were loaned to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, where they featured in a special display celebrating Henry Willett’s pioneering approach to collecting and the enduring importance of everyday ceramics in telling Britain’s social history.

Lucy Faithful, Assistant Curator at Brighton Museum & Art Gallery said:
“People come from far and wide to see the amazing Willett Collection. It is one of the museum’s precious gems. It is endlessly fascinating, surprising, hilarious, odd and shocking. Every mug, jug and figurine tells a story of turbulent times or everyday life. After more than two years behind closed doors, it’s fantastic to be able to welcome visitors back to one of our most loved galleries.”

Visitors can now once again explore the gallery much as Willett intended, with objects arranged according to the themes he devised more than a century ago, inviting visitors to discover the artistry and stories captured in clay.