Glazed ceramic mirror, Juliette Derel, Vallauris circa 1955

Name: Glazed ceramic mirror, Juliette Derel, Vallauris circa 1955
Brand: Juliette Derel
Rating: 5 (10 reviews)

About the Item

Glazed and stamped free-form ceramic mirror. Thick curved frame with rounded angles, decorated with scarified and stamped patterns under a shiny orange glaze; Signed " Juliette Derel " at the back. Vallauris, Circa 1955/1960 Height: 26 cm, 10.1 " ( left side ) 23 cm, 9.2 " ( right side ) Width: 35 cm, 13.8 " ( lower part ) 33 cm, 13 " ( upper part ) Depth: 2.9 cm, 1.1" Juliette Derel (1918-2007) Emblematic French ceramist of the 50s in Vallauris, France. Born in 1918 (Gisors) in Normandy, Juliette Derel follows a multifaceted artistic education (painting, drawing, ...) at the School of Fine Arts in Tours until 1937. In 1941, she works in a pottery workshop in Touraine. She decides in 1949/ 1950 to move to Vallauris. She settles in chemin du Fournas, close to the workshops le Tryptique, le Grand Chêne, la poterie Daniel, Her pieces are created at home and cooked in the kiln of her potters' neighbors. The beginnings in Vallauris Until 1952, she worked in the winter at the Poterie du Grand Chêne, reinforcing the team to respond to the influx of orders from department stores. Then Juliette creates her own workshop, 18 avenue de Cannes (with a wood-fired oven, then electric) and signs her pieces Juliette Derel. She uses the red earth of Vallauris and very rarely the white earth to produce unique pieces. Disapproving of serial production, she will never make a mold. In her beginnings, she produces a culinary ceramic (plates, pitchers, cups, bowls...) with graphic decorations in soft hues. In parallel with this utilitarian production shot in glazed earthenware, Juliette liberates the form and develops artistic pieces mounted in "colombin", with chimney collars, typical of the 50s style present in other modern ceramists, like Jacques Blin or Klaus Schultze. It is also the era of zoomorphic and anthropomorphic forms, with a labyrinthine or geometric incised decoration. Adapted from modeling and colombin, Juliette Derel uses a grounded earth for her sculpted pieces. From tableware to artistic pieces, she also created small furniture like mirrors, stools, coffee tables and lighting . A couple, a common style 1953-1961 She meets Jean Rivier a jewelry designer, in 1939 and finds him again in 1952 when the latter, who has returned from the Antilles, decides to settle in Vallauris. In 1953, Juliette and Jean get married. The production is in the continuity of Juliette’s work. If at the beginning, the style is common with a geometric abstract decor, over time, each develops their own visual language, always in the register of graphic abstraction, close to the surrealist spirit of the painter Joan Miro. Among the pieces produced, let us mention utilitarian (pitchers, bowls, vase, ashtray, plates ...) and decorative ceramics, jewelry (pendants ...), tables, mirrors, etc. Juliette releases the shape of the lamp bases, the lighting fixtures become dissymmetrical sculptures integrating metal rods. Then, she sculpts by modeling series 'cathedrals', and 'stones. ' Success is there, which allows the opening of a store at 37 rue Georges Clémenceau. The orders for stores and exhibition galleries, in France and abroad (USA, Canada, Switzerland, England, Belgium, Tunisia ...) are numerous. And the exhibitions follow one another. From 1957, tension settles in the couple who will divorce in 1959. (Jean was an intern student at Juliette for 3 years in order to obtain his status as a ceramist craftsman, the success of their joint production is one of the origins of the tensions in the couple). The Derel style Over time, the abstract decor fades, her work becomes mono or bichrome, Juliette Derel likes to play on aesthetic contrasts combining soft lines and the roughness of the earth. Its colors are warm and sunny, ranging from orange to bright yellow, to brilliant red to pink. The emblematic red orange of Derel is like the blue of Théodore Deck, it is the signature of the ceramist, even if the artist also likes to dive into water greens and bright or pale yellows. The piece is sometimes scarified with asymmetrical, geometric and abstract decor, thus accentuating the modernity of the form and volume. From 1962, to flee Vallauris, she settles in Saint Paul de Vence authentic village of traditional craftsmen, then in 1987 in Gréolières to continue her research work. Juliette Derel died in 2007. Related item: Ceramic mirror by Jean Rivier, Vallauris 1960 Item Reference LU934945692102

Creator:
Juliette Derel (Artist)
Dimensions:
Height: 10.24 in (26 cm)Width: 13.78 in (35 cm)Depth: 1.15 in (2.9 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Ceramic,Glazed
Place of Origin:
France
Period:
1950-1959
Date of Manufacture:
1955
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Excellent vintage condition, no scratches, no ware.
Seller Location:
Paris, FR
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU934947670432