Ivy was created in 1951 for the Festival of Britain.
The March 1952 Pottery Gazette and Glass Trade Review features an article about Colin Melborne and the story of Ivy:
The Slory of “Ivy”
Output from the studio is not great, and has not, in fact, by virtue of the experimental nature of the work, been planned to be great. But a number of interesting and spectacular pieces have already been produced.
Outstanding example, perhaps, is ‘Festival 51’ also known affectionately as “Ivy “). the mystical figure which, amid a chorus of protests, dominated the recent * Festival of Britain * exhibition at the Kings Hall, Stoke-on-Trent. She appeared on the scene enveloped in mystery and anonymity, and caused some prominent pottery designers to shake their heads at what they considered to be an affront to the dignity and the best interests of good potting. To them she appeared incongruous and grotesque, but to Col. Wade and Melbourne she has charm and a subtle beauty. But
* Ivy ” survives. Today she occupies a place of honour at Manchester Pottery. From her plinth in the office vestibule she is shielded from the critical gaze of the industry and public at large. As the years pass, her few days of basking may be for-gotten. One day, however, she may come to be recognised for what she really represents—the spirit of the 195: Festival of Britain. She is a symbolic figure created by Colin Melbourne and Col. Wade to represent the apathetic, half-hearted, artificial fervour which, to their minds, characterised the Festival.
That was ” Ivy’s mute message to the Potteries in 195]. Barring a Humpty Dumpty act, she will outlive many generations, and perhaps ultimately remind an-enlightened, more sensitive age that a work of art need not necessarily aim at giving a camera-like copy of Nature.
Ivy is this age’s gift to posterity-
