The
stinton family. renowned for their famous Highland Cattle
and Gamebird scenes, are probably the best known of all the
royal worcester artists, with members of the family painting
at the various worcester factories for almost one hundred
and sixty years.
The
best known of these would undoubtedly be Harry Stinton, his
father John Stinton junior and his uncle James Stinton, but
they were backed up and inspired by several other members
of the stinton family.
 The
stinton dynasty started with Henry Stinton who worked at the
Grainger factory, which from 1805 became part of the royal
worcester marque. He was one of the very first quality artists
to be employed there but few records survive from the early
days of the Grainger factory and it is only from parish records
that we know he worked there at all. Ceramic artists seldom
signed their pieces in those days, so nothing is known about
his life or his work.
John Stinton snr, was the first major member of the family
to appear in the records. He was Henry’s son, born in
1829.
John
Stinton snr, started at the Grainger factory in 1840 aged
eleven years and stayed there throughout his long working
life, until his retirement in 1895.
John
Senior was a consummate landscape and figure artist and by
the age of twenty two had become one of the most senior and
respected artists in the Grainger workforce.
John
was the first of the stintons to mix oil of cloves with his
paints to stop them drying out too quickly. This trick was
passed from stinton to stinton through the years and many
of the worcester workforce would comment on the smell emanating
from their workspace.
John
senior had five sons,
three of whom became painters at the worcester factories.
John
Stinton Junior
was John senior’s eldest son, born in 1854 he did not
turn to china painting until he was thirty five, when he joined
his father at the Grainger factory.
Walter
Stinton was born in the late 1860s and was
John seniors fourth son. He started at the Grainger factory
as a landscape painter where he produced many scenes of New
Zealand, copied from other pictures. He later moved to the
short lived Locke factory where he became known as a fine
painter of gamebirds.
He
was a skilled painter and may have been the inspiration for
his younger brother James's love of the subject.
When
Lockes closed down in 1905, Walter left the industry altogether
to work in Droitwich making windmills.
James
Stinton
was John senior’s youngest son and one of the best known
of the Stinton painters. Born in 1870 he joined the Grainger
factory with his father and brother a short while before they
were taken over by the Royal Worcester works in 1902. Following
this take over he moved across to the main factory where he
stayed until his retirement in 1951.
 Of
John Stinton Senior’s three children who worked as china
painters only one, John junior, had children that also followed
them into the industry.
Arthur
Stinton
was John junior’s eldest son, born in 1878 he started
at the Grainger factory after it had joined forces with Royal
Worcester before moving on to the Locke factory as a flower
painter with his uncle Walter. He only stayed there for a
short while and never achieved the status of his brother or
other family members. He left Locke’s to work as a general
decorator in a Brierley Hill glass works
In
1882,
Annie Stinton was born and followed her father and uncles
into the Grainger factory before moving over to the Royal
Worcester works. She was a general paintress but I am not
aware of any work actually signed by her.
In
1882,
Kate Stinton was born and is known to have worked as a paintress
at the Royal Worcester factory but nothing else is known.
In
1883,
Harry Stinton was born. Harry was John junior’s youngest
son and some might say he is the the best and last.
Harry
followed in his fathers footsteps painting Highland cattle
scenes but with more purple and autumnal tints to make his
work stand out from his fathers products.
Harry
was born in 1883 and suffered from many childhood illnesses
that kept him frequently in hospital but he joined the factory
in 1896 and obviously benefited from the experience as he
grew into a imposing figure that many people likened both
to his father and to the highland cattle that they both painted…..
James was a fine painter of water colours as well as ceramics
and he won several awards for his pictures which covered many
pastoral scenes of sheep, gamebirds and plain landscapes as
well as his highland cattle scenes. He is regarded as one
of the finest artists of the twentieth century
For
four generations, and one hundred and fifty eight years the
Stintons were represented at the Worcester factories. Their
work will be collected and reverred for many more generations
to come.
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Royal Worcester Stinton Artists
John
Stinton Junior is best known for his famous Highland cattle
scenes but also produced many paintings of English cattle
and was a fine painter of British castles which appear over
his signature, on many cabinet plate centres. 
James
Stinton was the youngest son of John Stinton senior; and John
juniors youngest brother. He started with the Grainger factory
specialising in gamebirds on ornamental vases, plate centres
and coffee sets. 