Ettore Sottsass at Sèvres, Cité de Céramique

Photo courtesy G. Jonca/Sevres
Cite de la ceramique.

An architect in the workshop, is the title (translated) of the current exhibit in the national porcelain manufacture at Sèvres' museum space. The architect in question is Ettore Sottsas; architect and designer, creator of the Valentine typewriter and the Carlton bookcase. He is also the father of the Memphis group (1981-1988) a group of designers who were at the crux of a style that is called postmodern design. In 1993, Sèvres invited Sottsass to imagine a series of pieces in porcelain. In collaboration, they discovered new forms and formulas for glazes, and produced vases that are now iconic figures of Sottsass' style.

Vase Sybilla, 1994. Photo courtesy G. Jonca/
Sevres Cite de la ceramique.

The china vases are superposed brightly colored shapes and look like totems or the vague outline of a person. The vase "Sybilla" for example, is made of two colored bell shapes separated by a ring of "biscuit" (unglazed porcelain) suggesting the silhouette of an orange skirt and black top held together by a white belt. This particular shade of orange is one of the colors studied by the manufacture for Sottsass' productions. I particularly liked the vases "Diane" and "Lucrèce". The former is in purple, white and red, and the latter in cream and a deep blue (a color that Sèvres is famous for). They both have forms lined with gold leaf that reflects light so brilliantly that they could be mistaken for table lamps.

A second collection of vases were created in 2006 and mix Sèvres porcelain with glass works from CIRVA a state funded experimental glass manufacture in Marseille. Glass elements are suspended from porcelain bowls with thick strings. The effect is a little disturbing because the roughness of the ropes offsets the nobility of the main materials. The idea of suspending large pieces of glass like windchimes is also unsettling. In a series of glassworks created by the CIRVA between 1999 and 2004 shapes of colored glass are suspended from, around, inside or outside of the vase portion of the glass. The shapes are complex and uneven.

Kachina 10, (2006-2012) CIRVA, Marseille,
ed. Galerie Mourmans, Maastricht.

Sottsass' simple shapes hide a deeper philosophy about the nature of design that he felt presented a "sort of figurative and metaphoric utopia of life". The pieces presented here are indeed architectures as the title of the exhibit suggests, but they are also little realms reproducing the fragility of life and people. In his later pieces with the CIRVA, Ettore Sottsass created many different shapes suggestive of human figures and called them "Kachinas" This, of course, is a reference to the Native American cult in which hundreds of deities are designated as spirits of different natural elements, sun, moon, trees, etc. The reference to the spiritual reminds us that while his art is very amusing, there is also a deeply mystical side to Sottsass' creative process.

Sottsass passed away on December 31, 2007.

The Manufacture nationale de Sèvres descends from a manufacture established in Vincennes by Madame de Pompadour in 1740. This manufacture was specialized in a special ceramic mixture called "porcelaine à pâte tendre" for its soft texture. In 1756 the workshop was transferred to Sèvres. A short time later it fell under control of King Louis XV. Following the discovery of kaolin in Limoges (kaolin or china clay is used to make traditional porcelain "à pâte dure") the royal manufacture began producing a greater variety of products starting in 1770. The manufacture and its collections were moved to their current spot on the banks of the Seine in 1876.

Sèvres - cité de céramique has a collection of mainly ceramics, but also some glass pieces gathered for research purposes and as sources of inspiration in the creation of pieces at the porcelain manufacture. Alexandre Brogniart, who was administrator from 1800-1847 established the museum. The museum building itself is a beautiful piece of classical looking architecture that separates the porcelain workshops, research and store rooms from the Seine. The permanent collections are a beautiful and fascinating tour of the history of porcelain and various techniques.

Ettore Sottsass - un architecte dans l'atelier
Through July 22, 2013

Cité de la Céramique - Sèvres
2 place de la Manufacture
92310 Sèvres

Opening hours:
10am - 5pm everyday except Tuesday.

Museum website