Precious Moments
Precious Moments is widely known as a series of collectible porcelain bisque figurines. The artwork depicts cute young children in sweet, wholesome situations - often accompanied by a heartwarming message. The original artwork was created by the illustrator Sam Butcher in the 1970s. more...
Alongside Spain's Lladro and Germany's M.I. Hummel, Precious Moments is one of the few porcelain figurine brands still alive in the 21st century. It is also the brand name for a series of giftware and collectibles licensed by Precious Moments, Inc (a.k.a. PMI) using the same designs.
Some have observed similarities in design with Margaret Keane's paintings of waifs or with Japanese Anime with their large sorrowful eyes.
General
Precious Moments is a lifestyle brand created by artist Sam Butcher. His simple illustrations of teardrop-eyed children included messages of heartfelt endurance and inspiration. Products derived from these illustrations (by license) are called "Precious Moments". Christian religious themes appear on occasion, as Butcher is a born-again Christian.
The flagship product is the "Precious MomentsTM Porcelain Bisque Figurines" sold by Enesco, Corp. (USA) since 1977. This world-famous product line has seen forty times the sales of the next-best selling Precious Moments product line. In the 21st century, Precious Moments is known as one of the few brands that mainly deal in porcelain figurines besides Lladro and Hummel.
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