Stoneware vase by Eugène Lion, Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye

Ovoid stoneware vase with a slightly narrowed neck, made by the ceramist Eugène Lion (1867-1945), a key figure of the Carriès school in Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye. The dark brown glaze, almost black in places, is worked with wide drips that reveal beautiful reserves of bare stoneware with a grainy texture, creating a play of materials and contrasts that is very characteristic of the work of Poyaudine clay. Born in 1867 in Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye, Eugène Lion comes from a lineage of potters established in the region since the 18th century; he learned the trade from his father, Amand Lion. When the sculptor Jean Carriès arrived in Puisaye in 1887, he was the one who introduced him to the traditional techniques of local utilitarian pottery, becoming an essential link between the creator and the artisans of the village. Until Carriès' death in 1894, he balanced his own production with assisting the master's work, from which he would retain a lasting taste for experimentation and a Japonese influence. He became one of the main representatives of the Carriès school, recognised for his worked glazes and his aesthetic close to wabi-sabi. He died in 1945. His work is preserved notably at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. Eugène Lion is referenced as a major artist in the book Grès de Puisaye – From Jean Carriès to the Present – Marks and Signatures. Condition: Perfect condition. Dimensions: H 12.5 cm X diameter 7.5 cm. Material: Glazed stoneware. Signature: Eugène Lion.