Imperial Porcelain Factory
 Logo of Imperial Porcelain
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Native name
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Императорский Фарфоровый Завод |
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| Industry | Hand-painted Ceramics Manufacturing |
| Founded | Saint Petersburg, Russia (1744) |
| Founder | Dmitry Ivanovich Vinogradov |
| Headquarters | Saint Petersburg, Russia |
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Area served
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International |
| Owner | Nikolai Tsvetkov |
| Website | www |
The Imperial Porcelain Factory (or Manufactory) (Russian: Императорский Фарфоровый Завод, Imperatorskii Farforovyi Zavod), is a producer of handpainted ceramics in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It was established by Dmitry Ivanovich Vinogradov in 1744. and was supported by the Romanov tsars since Empress Elizabeth. Many still refer to the factory by its well-known former name, Lomonosov Porcelain Factory.
Founded in 1744, the first porcelain manufactory in Russia was created by order of Empress Elizabeth, daughter of Peter the Great, to "serve native trade and native art." The factory produced wares exclusively for the ruling Romanov family and the Russian Imperial court.
Attempts to reveal the secret of hard paste true porcelain-making had expanded to Russia since the visit of Peter the Great to Saxony in 1718; there, he saw Meissen porcelain at the Dresden court. A talented mining engineer Dmitry Ivanovich Vinogradov, who studied metallurgy at Freiberg, Saxony, invented the formula for the Russian porcelain works established in 1744.
The Russian porcelain by Vinogradov had qualities similar to the Saxon porcelain, while its formula which consisted of only Russian ingredients, took its style from Chinese porcelain. At the beginning of the Vinogradov period the motifs were monochrome and simplified; by the end of this period the fine miniatures were completed on porcelain. Gold leaf for gilding porcelain was prepared from golden coins from the Imperial Treasury.
‘The Golden Age of Catherine’ – the reign of Catherine II the Great – was the age of prosperity for the fine Russian porcelain. In 1765 the manufactory was renamed the Imperial Porcelain Manufactory (IPM). From the very beginning of Catherine's reign IPM was obliged to produce fine porcelain and also to bring profit. The Imperial Court's need for porcelain was large, and the permanent orders from the Court let IPM maintain the highest quality.
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Wikipedia