Ref.12841
Jules LOEBNITZ (1836 – 1895), Ceramic panel “Child with a flower”

This rectangular panel made of enameled ceramic made by Jules Loebnitz in the second half of the 19th century depicting a child holding a bow in one hand and a flower in the other one from a painting by Emile Lévy (1826 – 1890). The Pichenot-Loebnitz factory was founded by Mr Pichenot, grand parent of Jules Loebnitz, in 1833. From 1841, Mr Pichenot had started the fabrication of uncrackable earthenware panels for mantel's interiors, showed with success during the Exhibition of 1844. Breaking with the traditional fabrication of white heating system, the Pichenot-Loebnitz factory, was one of the first to start the production of architectural earthenware decorations. In 1857, Jules Loebnitz, artist as much as an industrial, succeeded to his grand father and became director of the factory. He helped renovating the old mantels tiles during the restoration of the Castle of Blois before collaborating with the most important architects of his time Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, Laval, Charles Garnier, Just Lisch et Paul Sédille. Between the architect Paul Sédille and Jules Loebnitz, a true friendship was born that leads them to collaborate very closely from 1867. The architectural polychromy theoretician had met the man that has brought important progresses to French ceramic, allowing the making of important uncrackable earthenware panels. Thus, during the Great Exhibition of 1878, Paul Sédille realized the door of the Palais des Beaux-arts, while Jules Loebnitz was in charge of the ceramic decoration of the facade, in order to advocate the renewed of architectural polychromy. For this purpose, he made a series of three panels taking as a model the paintings of Emile Lévy, kept today in the Musée de la céramique architecturale of Auneuil, depicting the Painting, the Sculpture and the Architecture, transposed to enamel by Lazar Meyer, a student of the painter. The Painting depicts a scene on which we can see a man painting three naked women in the characteristic position of the Three Graces. Cupid, asking for a flower held by one of the woman, has most likely been used too as a model for the one we can see on our panel, as they have the exact same body position. Indeed, the naked child with his red hair is standing by its profile on both panels, the left leg is out straight, the other is bend. He's holding in his left hand a bow and straight out his other hand to the sky, toward where he is looking. The difference is visible with the representation of the flower that the child is holding in our panel. On the contrary of the original painting, the background is abstract, the only décor is the flower behind the child. We also find on one of the plate from La brique et la terre cuite by Pierre Chabt – book that has contributed to the success of the manufactory after it was published in the 1880’s – a panel depicting the same subject with a different background. This model is today kept in the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris.

Ref.13297
Empire style fireback "Venus and Cupid"

This Empire style fireback was made of cast iron in the late 19th century. It is adorned with a scene depicting the goddess Venus cleaning the face of Cupid. The scene is framed by a pearled edging, stylized palms motifs and scrolls with horns of plenty.

Ref.14832
Impressionist decor, large earthenware vase by Louis Auguste LEPÈRE for Faïencerie LAURIN

Designed between 1875 and 1878, this large ovoid vase is a technical feat due to its size and decoration. In earthenware, the polychrome decoration is made with slip, following a process developed by Ernest Chaplet at the Laurin earthenware factory in Bourg-la-Reine in 1871. The technique of slip painting was favored for making impressionist ceramics, in particular by Auguste Lepère. This painter, close to Félix Bracquemond, is the author of the landscape decoration which adorns our vase. It represents a Norman maritime landscape, between Dieppe and Etretat, with characteristic cliffs. The decor develops like a panoramic canvas, magnifying the beauty of the sky and illustrating the activities of the fishermen. The touch, vibrant and free, evokes the style of Eugène Boudin. The body of our vase is decorated with two lion heads modeled in relief. It rests on a sculpted and stained walnut base simulating a swamp populated with frogs.

Ref.13009
Émile BRACQUEMOND, Octave GUILLONNET, Winner's vase, 1924

This vase was created by the painter Octave Guillonnet and the ceramicist Émile Bracquemond for the Sèvres Manufacture on the occasion of the Paris Olympic Games in 1924. Octave Guillonnet (Paris, 1872-Montgeron, 1967) was an Orientalist painter who could also be considered a sports painter: he notably exhibited a monumental “rugby match” at the 1899 salon. He was also a member of the Society of Sport Painters and Sculptors from its foundation in 1922. The career of Émile Bracquemond (Paris, 1889-Clichy, 1970) is less well-known. However, it seems that besides his collaboration with the Sèvres Manufacture, he was particularly recognized for his feline sculptures. The order for commemorative vases to be awarded to the winners of sporting events was placed by the city of Paris in anticipation of the 1924 Olympic Games to promote the production of the Sèvres Manufacture. Although Pierre de Coubertin was opposed to awarding trophies to winners, the project, once launched, was completed for this edition only. Subsequently, the rules were changed, and winners were awarded only medals. The shape of this vase is very simple: the body flares out in an almost straight line from the base to two-thirds of its height before tapering towards the neck. The neck is adorned with a gray band bordered by a gold stripe, decorated with silhouettes of biplanes left in reserve. The body of the vase, with its subtly shaded blue glaze, features four pâte-sur-pâte scenes, each honoring a different sport. In the case of our vase, polo, Basque pelota (the athlete holds a chistera), and gymnastics apparatus are represented. The sports are depicted very precisely, with each discipline represented by a characteristic gesture. The slight relief of these decorations gives them greater depth and liveliness. While the winner’s vases were usually covered with a gold and brown decoration representing laurel branches, ours has a plain blue background that distinguishes it from the others. Not all the disciplines represented on our vase were Olympic sports in 1924. Indeed, Basque pelota was only presented as a demonstration sport at this edition of the competition. Moreover, polo, which was an Olympic sport in 1924, is no longer part of the Games today. There are four models in total for these commemorative vases, each depicting four different sports. The Sports Museum has a copy of each model, providing a complete overview. The sports represented on the other vases are as follows: rugby, rowing, diving, and football; javelin, wrestling, shot put, and boxing; tennis, cycling, sailing, and shooting. This winner’s vase is therefore both a historical and artistic testament to the 1924 Olympic Games, which will resonate on the centenary of this event and the Paris Olympic Games in 2024, particularly within the framework of the edition by the manufacture of trophy vases created by six artists from the Beaux-Arts de Paris, intended to be awarded to the French gold medalists at the Paris 2024 Games.

Ref.5455
Louis XV style mantel in veined Carrara marble