One of the most elusive Cybis-related publications has been the exhibit catalog of the sculptures that were donated to the Mercer County Community College in June 1975. It is softcover, with a plastic comb/ring binding and un-numbered pages. This publication appeared only on one Cybis price list (Fall 1975) as this item under Publications: Mercer [...]
Helen Granger Young was one of several freelance sculptors who designed for the Cybis studio during the 1970s. Unlike most of their other designers, Ms. Young’s work for them was limited to a single genre: portraits of Native Americans. She was born in Mimico, Ontario, Canada in either 1922 or 1923, depending on which source [...]
Having previously looked at the pairs, companions, and sets that the Cybis porcelain studio produced, it’s also interesting to see what I call their ‘two-fer’ and ‘trio’ pieces. These are sculptures that have more than one subject, both (or all) being of equal design weight/importance. There was also one sculpture that was composed of four [...]
Sometimes you will see a piece of Cybis porcelain with the letters AP or A.P. near the Cybis signature; those initials stand for ‘artist’s proof.’ This term has long been used in the printmaking industry. It originally meant the first (proofing) run of an edition of prints, which the artist/painter would review and make any changes [...]
The 1964 World’s Fair, held at Flushing Meadow Park in Queens County, NY, coincided with the first several years of the ‘golden age’ of the Cybis porcelain studio. It was also the first large-scale opportunity for Cybis to be seen by many people who would have otherwise been unaware of the studio’s existence. The Fair [...]
Among the several distinct style genres of Cybis porcelain (papka, artsy 1940s porcelain, 1950s commercial-mold, and post-1950s) there is a small subset that I call ‘Cordey-Cybis transitional.’ In a nutshell, these are pieces that anyone would mistake for Cordey items except for the fact that they are signed M. B. Cybis, or stamped Cybis, instead. [...]
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