It has always seemed a shame that throughout the history of art porcelain it was so rare for public credit to be given to the artists and artisans who actually produced these beautiful objects from day to day. Even collectors who focused on the work of one particular studio hardly ever knew who was actually responsible for the existence of the sculptures they so coveted and acquired, because all was sold under the imprimatur of the studio itself. The anonymous artists and artisans were not publicly acknowledged for their part in the creative process; indeed, some studios specifically prohibited the designers themselves from sharing that information.
This “artisan anonymity” was not unique to Cybis or to any of the porcelain art studios of the 1960s onward; it was simply the way things were done in the industry. A notable exception was the Connoisseur of Malvern studio, whose pieces all bear the individual marks of each artist who had a hand (literally!) in creating it.
In my opinion it’s past time to give the artists and artisans some credit for the fruit of their creative labors, and to that end I’ve compiled an “honor roll” of those who plied their craft on behalf of the Cybis Studio. The list below derives from many sources and by no means covers the studio’s entire existence; hopefully it may be expanded as time goes on.
The fine porcelain sculptures by Cybis, Boehm, and similar studios were the product of many talented hands, each with their own area of expertise. From the designers who originated the ideas and sketches, to the sculptors who brought them into three dimensions in clay, to the mold-makers who enabled them to be properly reproduced, to the casters, mounters, kiln operators, finishers, and decorators whose deft touch with a brush so pleases the eye – every person, at every step of the way, was vital and the process very personal. And let’s not forget those in the packing and shipping room who took such care that these fragile objects would arrive at their destination undamaged!
This group photo of all of the Cybis employees was taken in the studio’s inner courtyard during the summer of 1979. Owner Joseph Chorlton, wearing a light jacket, dark tie and holding a newspaper, sits near the center front.
The backstories of most of the artists and artisans at the Cybis studio will probably never be known, but others were recognized in their own right before and/or after their time there; a section devoted to artist biographies can be found here.
Freelance artists who were not in-house Cybis employees are also noted below, in brackets.
The Cybis Porcelain ‘Honor Roll’ – with many thanks for all the beauty that you have created
Artists and Artisans
Patricia Applegate (painter)
Anna Murro Baez
Betty Bannister (decorator)
Rose Barclay (decorator)
John Baze (kiln operator)
Belle Boehm (painter)
Mary Kupiec Borowski (decorator)
Jake Blanch (moldmaker)
Cyndy Bohonovsky [freelance illustrator]
Leslie Brown, Jr.
Linda Klemann Brown
Lynn Klockner Brown (designer/sculptor)
Loretta Buchanan (painter and color designer)
Harry L. Burger [freelance designer/sculptor]
Helen Callahan
Vincent Ceglia [freelance designer of display signs and Cybis print catalogs]
Joan Cheesman (Head Caster)
Kyle Conley (decorator)
Mildred Cook (designer/sculptor)
Susan (or Suzan) Cook
Jules Dolewa (Master Moldmaker)
Krystyna Kurpiewski Dziekonski (decorator)
Patricia Eakin [freelance designer/sculptor]
Susan Clark Eaton [freelance designer/sculptor]
Rose Eganey (mounter)
Dolores Ervin
Gertrude Fass [freelance designer/sculptor]
Stella Fleming (sculptor)
Cathy Jean Gernhardt (decorator)
Marie Denelsbeck Hall (decorator)
Judith Harrison (decorator)
Connie Hegedus
William Hegedus
Frank Hollendonner (moldmaker, early 1940s)
Laszlo Ispanky (Head Designer/sculptor, 1960-1966)
George Ivers (artist; Art Director, 1970s-early 1980s)
Julia Jones (detailer)
Dorothy Kaminski (decorator; later Art Supervisor)
Helen D. Kierepka (decorator)
Jerry Klein [freelance designer/sculptor]
Edward Krakowski (caster)
Laura Lansing-Jones (Modeling Department Supervisor)
Edward Lettieri (repairs/restorations)
Laura Lewis
Susan Lloyd (designer/sculptor)
Tom Lubas (moldmaker)
Edward Lutiero Jr. (decorator)
Anne Marie (“Ginny”) MacCotter (Head Painter/Decorator)
Elise Maletaki (mounter)
Elsie Matelski (artist)
Marie Mayoros
Helen McCook (sculptor)
Florence Mieszkowski (decorator)
Liselotte (“Lilo”) Haenisch Mihalek (mounter and decorator)
Stanislawa Misiolek
Scotty Moonlight (mounter)
Ralf Morrow (kiln supervisor)
Victor Munn (caster)
Angela Murray (decorator)
Julia Nokyos (painter)
Charles Oldham [freelance designer/sculptor]
Jacqueline Onofre
Victoria Onofre
Patricia Pae (designer and research analyst)
William Pae (designer/sculptor; Art Director, 1980s)
Yolande Palmi (designer/sculptor; Art Director, 1980s)
Michelle Post (artist)
William Renze (ceramics engineer)
Ruby Sienkiewicz (artist)
Marion Muzzicatra Sikos (molder/moldmaker)
James Nelson Slick [freelance designer of Nashua]
Mary E. Stein (decorator)
Keith Stewart (caster)
Loretta Szutarski-Cowart
Dorothy Temple [freelance floral consultant, mid-1980s]
Betty Thatcher (packer/shipper)
Jack Thatcher (packer/shipper)
Linda Edelstein Tuman (painter)
Dolores Valenza [freelance designer/sculptor]
Ruby Harding Richards Wallace (finisher)
Anthony Wiater (Casting Foreman,1983 – 1988; he had previously worked at the Cordey studio)
Beatrice Wiater
Carol Worstall (caster)
Nancy Worstall (caster)
Mabel Wylie (painter)
Doug Yahn (moldmaker)
Helen Granger Young [freelance designer/sculptor of early North American Indians series]
Ruth Zasoski
Helen Zola (decorator)
Stephen Zuczek (sculptor)
Studio Management and Administration
Owner/Directors after death of Boleslaw & Marja Cybis:
Marylin Kozuch Chorlton (d. 1977) [also artist, designer, and Art Director]
Joseph Chorlton (d. 2011)
Theresa Rose Chorlton
Administrative/Sales/Marketing:
Frank Bader
Linda Carey
John Crawford
Sandra Deese
Ann Dorlon
Vicky Duncan
Peter Frost
Joseph Fry
William Hancock
Hazel Herman
Thomas Higgins
Barbara Hotz
Ida Julian
Alicia Kozuch
Jerry Moran
Dodie Murphy
John Murphy
Frank Redden
Jerry Sawyer
Allen Schoening
Anne M. Sears
Dan Sneburger
Anthony (“Tony”) Trezza
Helen Karen Wood
Frank Zanger
If any reader is, or knows of, other Cybis Studio alumni or freelance designers I would love to be able to add you or them to the Cybis Honor Roll. There is a contact-form link below.
Name Index of Cybis Sculptures
Visual Index (for human figures/busts only)
About the Cybis Reference Archive
What is Cybis?
Images of Cybis porcelain sculptures are provided for informational and educational purposes only. All photographs are copyrighted by their owner as indicated via watermark. Please see the copyright notice in the footer and sidebar for important information regarding the text that appears within this website.
The Cybis Archive is a continually-updated website that provides the most comprehensive range of information about Cybis within a single source. It is not and never has been part of the Cybis Porcelain studio, which is no longer in business.
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