Jean de Lespinasse – from ‘industrial’ to desirable
Today, Jean de Lespinasse pottery is sought after by private collectors and interior designers. Quite the turnround for a discreet mid century studio dismissed in its day as ‘industrial’….
Art Deco cocktail stick sets were a French speciality. They were made for canapés, snails, shellfish, cherries in eau-de-vie and other morsels – but most of all, for admiring… Trust the French to turn spearing an olive into an art form!
Nothing says French chic more than a silk scarf. This month, we dive into the frivolous, floaty, feminine world of the vintage French designer square.
Portrait of a French antique hunter : Maurice Ravel
A glimpse into the private world of Maurice Ravel, composer and collector extraordinaire
Close-up on Jacques Pouchain, Atelier Dieulefit Buy now This month, the spotlight is on mid century French ceramist, Jacques Pouchain (1925-2015). His pottery could be functional and abstract, figurative and playful – but it was always modern. And so it feels, still, especially pieces from his personal production of the 1960s and 1970s. This tall…
We recently acquired this quirky quartet of Art Deco liquor bottles by Robj Paris – they’re available to buy here. But who or what was Robj? Time to revisit the story behind these whimsical objects from the Jazz Age…
Why pottery lovers can’t resist La Puisaye This summer, we went pottering in a town famous for a 500-year-old stoneware tradition – and for sparking off a French ceramics revival. Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye is one of those beguiling Burgundy towns surrounded by rolling countryside, where chateaux pop up over every hedgerow. Oh, and it also this rather…
The Salon des Arts Ménagers – SAM for short – was France’s own “Ideal Homes” Exhibition. From 1926 to 1983, with a gap during WWII, it influenced popular French home design and aspirations like no other event.
Pierre D’Avesn: designs on Art Deco Les Mouettes vase c1925 by P. D’Avesn, available to buy In an Art Deco world, all seagulls would be elongated and elegant, like the ones that cruise around this vase by Pierre d’Avesn (1901-1984). It was made around 1926-1930, when D’Avesn was working as an independent designer. Unlike René…
The French pottery Verceram perfectly captured mid century style in France. With its bold contrasts and groovy shapes, it might have come from another universe. When the company closed in 1971, it left behind an amazing legacy of mid century designs… and some questions.