Ref.12820
Théodore DECK (1823-1891), Earthenware dish with a flying mallard

This glazed ceramic dish was made in the workshop of the ceramist Théodore Deck (1823-1891). Théodore Deck initially trained as a stove maker. When he set up in Paris on his own account in 1858, he made stove linings and then, on the strength of his success, moved into ceramics. The studio produced many dishes in collaboration with well-known painters, including Ernest Carrière, who made a series of dishes on the same subject as this one in the 1890s-1900s. Deck gradually perfected his technique and enjoyed great success at the many World’s Fairs he took part in. In 1878, he was made an Officer of the Légion d'Honneur. He ran the Sèvres factory between 1887 and his death in 1891. The dish is decorated with an extremely naturalistic mallard captured in full flight, in the middle of a sky with cottony clouds and above a vast expanse of water as if wrinkled by a breath of wind. The background of this dish is particularly elaborate, clearly distinguishing between the sky and the water thanks to variations in the thickness of the glaze. This decoration reveals Deck’s interest in Far Eastern art, which he collected from the 1870s onwards. This inspiration is particularly evident in the choice of the mallard, often depicted by Hiroshige in his prints. This work is an emblematic example of Théodore Deck’s mastery of the enamel technique, enabling him to achieve great finesse in his work: the bird is depicted with great precision and clarity. The Théodore Deck et des pays du Florival Museum, in Guebwiller, has a dish also made by Deck, decorated with a mallard taking flight in front of a golden sun, which is very similar to another dish in the Marc Maison gallery.

Ref.15164
Théodore DECK, circular dish with eggplant base with swallows

This ornamental dish decorated with poppy flowers and two swallows circling on an aubergine background was made in glazed ceramic by Théodore Deck (1823-1891) at the end of the 19th century. Théodore Deck initially trained as a stove maker. When he set up on his own in Paris in 1858, he made stove linings and, building on his success, moved into ceramics. The studio produced a large number of dishes, sometimes in collaboration with well-known painters. He gradually perfected his technique and enjoyed great success at the many World’s Fairs he took part in. In 1878, he was made an Officer of the Légion d’Honneur. He ran the Sèvres factory between 1887 and his death in 1891. This dish bears witness to the influence of Asian art on his work from the 1870s onwards: the dark background is set off by flat, brightly coloured, slightly shaded motifs, with no sense of depth. The stems, leaves and soft flowers are stylised, as they might be in Japanese prints. Finally, swallows are regarded very positively in Japan and are a recurring motif in that country’s art. The background of this dish is particularly elaborate, giving the illusion that the birds are swirling the air around them. The Marc Maison gallery is presenting another dish by Théodore Deck, in which brightly coloured flowers stand out against an aubergine background, as well as a dish created in collaboration with the painter Éléonore Escallier, in which tits and a bullfinch add life to the more plant-like pattern that surrounds them.

Ref.5722
Napoleon III style mantel with modillions carved in black Marquina marble