Cobalt Blue Flamed Glazed Earthenware Bowl with Handle and Hammered Metal Mount by André Villien, Paris, 1910-1920

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Description

André Villien, a French sculptor and decorator active in Paris between 1905 and 1924, developed a distinctive style based on … Read more André Villien, a French sculptor and decorator active in Paris between 1905 and 1924, developed a distinctive style based on the combination of ceramic bodies—earthenware, stoneware, porcelain—and hand-worked metal mounts: repoussé pewter, bronze, and hammered copper.

He collaborated with several leading ceramists, including Louis Dage and the Maison Milet of Sèvres. He registered the trademark "L'Étain Français Paris, A.V. trèfle quatre feuilles" for his pewter pieces. His work is rooted in a tradition of ceramic metalwork inherited from the 19th century, renewed by the formal vocabulary of Art Nouveau and then Art Deco.

This hemispherical bowl is covered in a cobalt blue glaze with flame-like variations, ranging from deep blue to midnight blue, with luminous drips characteristic of high-fire firing. The glaze's style is reminiscent of the production of the Maison Milet de Sèvres, although the body is unmarked.

The rim is encircled by a hammered metal ring with a coppery patina, likely copper or bronze, featuring a double band. The side handle, made of hammered metal with a textured surface, terminates in a double-spiral volute—a motif characteristic of late Art Nouveau. The interior is finished with the same flamed cobalt blue glaze.
The base bears the handwritten inscription "Collection de la Marquise de Sévigné / A. Villien," documenting the commission from the chocolate factory founded by Auguste Rouzaud—the same patron who commissioned the Alfred Renoleau teapot also held in our collections.

Very good condition. Height: 10 cm; diameter: 16 cm; weight: 530 g. This piece has an attribution mark,
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