The idea of a logo for the society was first proposed in early 1974 when the Society was considering the issuance of membership cards. One of the founding members had offered to have a graphic artist who was employed by his company try her hand at a design. Some specimen cards were shown at a council meeting on 18 July 1974 and “studied with much interest and appreciation”. It was thought, however, “that they were not entirely suitable as the ‘logo’ resembled a dish of a type which did not exist and this might cause confusion.”
The minutes do not reveal who suggested the now-familiar SEACS logo that features a Sukhothai-style fish, but who of those familiar with Southeast Asian ceramics doesn’t love this saucy little fish with its upturned tail?!
The Sukhothai fish motif was popular amongst the Sukhothai potters of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries and is known to all collectors of Southeast Asian art. It was noted at the society’s 25th AGM that it “still serves as a happy reminder of the society’s primary aim and area of interest, which is to promote an appreciation and knowledge of the ceramic art of China and its Southeast Asian neighbours. Quite appropriately, our jaunty fish is depicted in ‘Ming blue’, the colour of the decorated wares exported from China over the centuries into the ‘Nanyang’ or Southern Oceans.”
Today, we feel our logo is as appropriate today as it was in the society’s early years and serves as a constant reminder of the important role ceramics play in global history.
