Marie-Thérèse Espelt, known better as Mithé Espelt, was a dominant force in mid-20th-century ceramics in France. Mithé is remembered for her modern ceramic wall mirrors, gilded and enameled ashtrays and other ornate objects and boxes, often featuring birds and lively colors. She preferred not to sign her pieces and, as a consequence, much of her work has been misattributed, including to French ceramist François Lembo.
Mithé grew up in the Camargue region of France. Her father’s extensive network included 1904 Nobel Prize winner Frédéric Mistral and Parisian painter and decorator Jean Hugo. Mithé’s early introduction to a community of artists inspired her to study sculpture and drawing at the Beaux-Arts School in Montpellier in 1939.
Mithé’s early work caught the attention of French ceramist Emilie Decanis and jewelry distributor Charles Démery. Mithé set up a ceramics workshop in the Hôtel de Bernis in Lunel, where she quickly garnered a reputation for her ceramic work and accessories, including mirrors, jewelry boxes and buttons. Démery founded the Souleiado boutique, which began distributing Mithé’s work, thus attracting a worldwide audience.
French author Antoine Candau wrote a retrospective book on Mithé’s career titled Mithé Espelt, the Discreet Luxury of the Every Day, which contributed to bringing her legacy to the forefront while shedding light on her anonymity. While Mithé was respected within her inner circle, the general public is only now beginning to understand the immense talent behind her over five-decade-long career.
Find Mithé Espelt mirrors, decorative objects, wall decorations and more for sale on 1stDibs.
Mithé Espelt Square Ceramic Box
By Mithé Espelt
Located in Saint-Ouen, IDF
Decorative square box by Mithé Espelt, stained wood box covered with a ceramic lid showing a single white and blue flower framed with gold glaze....
Ceramic
$1,920Sale Price|20% Off
H 2.75 in W 5.75 in D 5.75 in
Mithe Espelt Ceramic and Fused Glass Jewelry Box France c 1968
By Mithé Espelt
Located in Chicago, IL
Ceramic Jewelry Box by Mithé Espelt, France, 1960s Ceramic enamels in shades of green gold with fused glass with iconic blackened wood box. Literature: Mithé Espelt, le luxe discret...
Ceramic
Brayton Mid Century Ceramic Box
Located in New York, NY
Mid Century Brayton Laguna Ceramic Keep Sake Box. Rich solid black glaze accented with metallic gold glaze having a simple rectangular shap...
Ceramic, Pottery
Odette Dijeux Mid-Century Signed Ceramic Box, circa 1950, Belgium
By Odette Dijeux
Located in Brussels, BE
Nice Odette Dijeux mid-century decorative box, circa 1950, Belgium. White and brown enameled ceramic. Signed underneath Odette Dijeux . Each piece of this artist is unique and po...
Ceramic
Aldo Londi Bitossi Ceramic Box, Mid-Century Modern, Italy, 1960s
By Bitossi, Aldo Londi
Located in New York, NY
Aldo Londi Bitossi Ceramic Box, Mid-Century Modern, Italy, 1960s. Small scale Mondrian box decorated with rectangles and lines and glazed in red, yellow, and black. Signed faintly on...
Ceramic, Clay
$587
H 1.57 in W 5.12 in D 3.54 in
Mid-Century Modern Ceramic Box with Lid, Beige, German Design, 1960s
Located in Hamburg, DE
Mid-Century German Ceramic Box with Lid, 1960s, in Very Good conditions. Designed 1960 to 1969. Additional information: Materials: Ceramic Color: Beige Styles: Mid-Century Modern Co...
Ceramic
Mithé Espelt Ceramic Jewelry Box, Mid-Century Modern, France, 1950s
By Mithé Espelt
Located in Saint-Amans-des-Cots, FR
Mid-Century Ceramic Jewelry Box by Mithé Espelt — Lunel, France, 1950s. A stunning mid-century ceramic jewelry box crafted by renowned French artist Mithé Espelt in Lunel, France, d...
Ceramic, Wood
Ceramic Box by Nanni Valentini for Ceramica Arcore, Italy, 1970s
By Arcore Ceramica 1, Nanni Valentini
Located in Milan, IT
Ceramic box by Nanni Valentini for Ceramica Arcore.
Ceramic
$2,583
H 2.37 in W 3.55 in D 3.55 in
Mithé Espelt Glazed Ceramic and Wood Box with Stylized Floral Motif
By Mithé Espelt
Located in Saint-Ouen, IDF
Elegant decorative box designed by Mithé Espelt, France, circa 1960s. The piece features a hand-glazed ceramic lid resting on a simple stained wood base, exemplifying Espelt’s distin...
Ceramic, Wood
Mid-Century Ceramic Jewelry Box by Perignem - Belgium 1950s
By Perignem
Located in Linkebeek, BE
Mid-Century Ceramic Jewelry Box by Perignem - Belgium 1950s The Perignem ceramic workshop in Beernem, Belgium was the foundation of modern Flemish ceramics which flourished in the 19...
Ceramic
Embossed Ceramic Box, Model "Flowers" by Mithé Espelt, France, 1970
By Mithé Espelt
Located in Paris, Ile-de-France
A rectangular chest with three flowers glazed in green, blue and white. Crackled gold frame. Wooden base with green felt at the back. France, Circa 1970 Dimensions : Height ...
Earthenware
Flamed sandstone box by Charles Gréber, France circa 1920
By Charles Greber
Located in Paris, Ile-de-France
Octogonal box with lid, sporting a large and decorative handle with foliage pattern. Rich marbled brown/ green glaze. Charles Gréber (1853-1935) Beauvais, France. signed " C. Gréb...
Sandstone
Vase or cachepot glazed ceramic, Roger Capron, Vallauris, 1950's
By Roger Capron
Located in Paris, Ile-de-France
Glazed ceramic vase or cachepot. Ceramic glazed in several shades of turquoise, blue and white with linear black motives . This decor is generally seen in red, navy blue and yello...
Ceramic
Guido Gambone Mid-Century Ceramic Vide Poche, Italy, 1960
By Guido Gambone
Located in Paris, Ile-de-France
Glazed ceramic anthropomorphic bowl or vide poche. Body-shaped with head and arms. A fish on a blue background inside the bowl. Guido Gambone ( 1909-1969) signed Gambone with donkey ...
Ceramic
glazed ceramic "Vase à Oreille" Roger Capron Vallauris 1960.
By Roger Capron
Located in Paris, Ile-de-France
Glazed ceramic " vase à oreille". Stylized polychrom figure of a bull on one side. Perfect thick glaze '"Oreille" or ear shaped vases are typical of ...
Ceramic
Cachepot with Bamboo Decoration by Pol Chambost, 1950s
By Pol Chambost
Located in Paris, Ile-de-France
Earthenware cachepot by Pol Chambost (1906-1983) Cylindrical form, the body is formed of stylized bamboos Glazed with yellow of Naples heightened with ochre and brown, black inte...
Ceramic, Earthenware
