Brexitware. 'Uncertain TEA. See where the tea leaves remain to read the future...'

The aftershocks of Brexit’s political earthquake were felt locally and globally, and were exacerbated by a lack of a clear vision for Britain’s departure from the European Union, as well as by the unexpected nature of the result. After the referendum, politicians, social commentators and historians strove both to define the new nature of the UK’s relationship with Europe and to identify the underlying reasons behind the shock decision to leave. Both of these phenomena are visible in a playful way in this simple tea set. In the first instance, the saucer and the inside rim of the cup bear the logo ‘see where the tea leaves remain to read the future’. In addition to the words ‘leaves’ and ‘remains’ punning on both sides of the Brexit debate (leave vs remain), the act of reading tea leaves, a long-held superstitious way of telling the future, is an ironic commentary on the British political establishment’s perceived inability to provide a future plan for a post-Brexit UK. The place where this set was produced is also significant. Once an industrial powerhouse, by the latter half of the 20th century and in the early 21st, Stoke-on-Trent had become a byword for post-industrial decline. Its high unemployment rate and urban decay were identified as possible reasons behind the region’s 69.4 % vote in favour of leaving the European Union, one of the highest in the country. An area once known as the ceramics capital of the world now also became known as a capital of Brexit, a transition neatly embodied in these colourful objects.

Stamp Position: base “Uncertain Tea, Brexit Ware, made in Stoke-on-Trent”