Paris Porcelain de Sèvres A historical review of porcelain de Sèvres Paris France Christopher Wagner
Vase indien E, décor aux oiseaux
The death of Louis XIV marked an important transition in art and taste. Among many other things, it led to a transition in tableware, from faience to porcelain. Quite rapidly ceramic makers realized they not only had the technology and craftsmanship to copy most of the porcelain coming from China—which was gracing the tables of the aristocrats—but they could also do it better. They abandoned faience and started making the more fashionable porcelain.
Then in 1740 three French artisans of Vincennes, then a village east of Paris, created a small porcelain factory that went bankrupt twice before moving to Sèvres, a village a bit west of Paris, located along the Seine. Here is where French porcelain flourished, as this prime location facilitated shipment to cosmopolitan cities of Europe.
From an imitation of white Chinese porcelain, known as blanc de Chine, the manufacturer evolved to producing polychrome, mostly blue, red, and green on a white background, usually depicting scenes of animals and flowers.
In 1759 King Louis XV placed the factory under control of the crown and to this day, Manufacture nationale de Sèvres still belongs to the French State. Many famous nineteenth- and twentieth-century artists such as Gallet, Hector Guimard, Serge Poliakoff, and Rodin designed for Sevres.
Assiette du service égyptien
Today’s production is limited to some five thousand pieces a year, handmade of course. Manufacture nationale de Sèvres is still located in the original splendid building, which was built between 1753 and 1756 by French architect Lindet.
The Musee national de Ceramique-Sèvres contains some five thousand objects manufactured by Sèvres among fifty thousand others. Open every day except Tuesday, it is only fifteen minutes by car from the in Paris. The museum is worth a visit but do not miss the visit of the actual manufactury. You can use your Paris Museum Pass for entry into both venues.
Another option for porcelain connoisseurs is to visit the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres store store at the Palais-Royal. Along with the objects that are still in production, some for more than two hundred fifty years, one can purchase tableware, vases, and sculpture by contemporary artists Ettore Sottsass, Louise Bourgeois, or Pierre Charpin.
