1 - FÉLIX OPTAT MILET (1838–1911) & ÉMILE DIFFLOTH (Painter and Decorator)

FÉLIX OPTAT MILET (1838–1911) & ÉMILE DIFFLOTH (Painter and Decorator) Wide-bodied vase, circa 1875. Made of polychrome glazed earthenware, with a Japanese-inspired decoration of chrysanthemums and branching flowers on a saffron-yellow background, bordered at the neck and base by friezes of palmettes. Glazed signatures “O.Milet Sèvres” and “Diffloth,” numbered 399. H. 24 - W. 26.5 - D. 8.5 cm (A few chips in the glaze at the base) Description: Born into a family of potters, Félix Optat Milet trained at the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres, which he joined in 1862 as a modeler before working there as a decorator. He worked there until 1879, alongside his brother Ambroise Milet, who was then director of kilns and clay bodies. As early as 1866, he began developing his own business by having a kiln built at 6 Rue Troyon, near the Manufacture. This independent workshop marked the beginning of a family venture that would continue for over a century. Renowned for the quality of its ceramic production, the Milet company participated in major World’s Fairs and notably won a gold medal in Paris in 1889. Upon the death of its founder, the company was taken over by his son, Paul Milet, who ran it from 1890 to 1931, and then by his grandson, Henri Milet, until the workshop closed in 1971. Félix Optat Milet’s career thus illustrates the close ties between the Sèvres ceramic tradition and the rise of independent workshops in the second half of the 19th century. His works are now part of public collections, notably at the Musée d’Orsay and the National Ceramics Museum in Sèvres.