In honor of the Spring, we are sharing some of our florally-inspired items over the next several days. Enjoy the season—including the flowers which delightfully distinguish the Spring.
This has always been one of my favorite vases. Stylized dandelions are carved and hand-painted upon the classic body of this heavy, stoneware vase. The Aesthetic Movement decoration provides a glimpse of the Art Nouveau movement to come. It was made in 1896 by the little ceramics workshop, Revernay, in Digoin, France. Revernay seems to be an "offshoot" of the older Alsace (France) ceramics workshop, Utzschneider & Cie. Utzschneider had been founded in the Eighteenth Century and counted Napoleon I amongst its customers. Alas, not much is known about the Revernay ceramics firm—except for the beauty of their work.
Alsace is that region in Western France which blends German and French culture, food, architecture and language. After the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), victorious Germany annexed Alsace as part of Germany. In response, Utzschneider built a new company (and workshop) in Digoin, deeper into France. And they gave the new workshop a clearly French name. This firm began production in 1896—the year this vase was crafted, which makes this one of the earliest Revernay pieces.
Much company history has been forgotten (or lost) over the years. But Revernay did exhibit at the 1900 World's Fair in Paris. After World War I, the company seems to have been combined with Sarreguemines which continued through the Art Deco and into the Modernist era. In the 1970's, new owners discontinued the art pottery and concentrated on making tiles—until the company was liquidated in 2007.
More Springtime flowers tomorrow and in the days to come.
Though our Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed, LEO Design is still alive and well! Please visit our on-line store where we continue to sell Handsome Gifts (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
We also can be found in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania at The Antique Center of Strabane (www.antiquecenterofstrabane.com).
Or call to arrange to visit our Pittsburgh showroom (by private appointment only). 917-446-4248