77 - Raoul DUFY (1877–1953) and Joseph Llorens ARTIGAS (1892–1980)

Raoul DUFY (1877–1953) and Joseph Llorens ARTIGAS (1892–1980) A spherical vase known as “Aux baigneuses,” made of engobed earthenware with stanniferous enamel, graffitoed and painted in shades of green, featuring a slightly raised relief decoration of a circle of nude figures Signed on the base in blue “Raoul Dufy,” with the initials “LlA” in red for Llorens Artigas, and a number/date in a blue cartouche “96-30-1-928” Also bears the two artists’ fingerprints on the reverse Circa 1928 H: 32.5 cm (previous restoration on the body) Bibliography: -Fanny Guillon-Lafaille, “Catalogue raisonné de Raoul Dufy,” where our vase is listed as “C-060” in the ceramics section, no. 096. -Gérard Landrot, “Les céramiques de Raoul Dufy,” Editions Langlaude, Paris, 2008, for a vase similar to ours, reproduced as No. 39 on page 122. A leading figure in modern art, Raoul Dufy developed a unique artistic language in which the liveliness of his lines, the luminosity of his colors, and the rhythm of his compositions convey a luminous vision of the world. His interest in the decorative arts led him to meet, in Paris in 1922, the Catalan ceramicist Josep Llorens Artigas, whose experiments with forms and glazes opened up new perspectives for his artistic world. Their collaboration gave rise to an original body of ceramic work, based on the complementary talents of the painter and the ceramicist, of which this vase, created in 1928, is a remarkable example. A circle of nude figures, modeled in slight relief, animates the body of the vase in a harmonious movement that follows its curves. The figures’ movement, their rhythmic arrangement, and the sensuality of the subject evoke the Mediterranean world and the joie de vivre so characteristic of Dufy. This work is a true collaborative creation: Dufy’s drawing harmonizes with the vase’s curves, while Artigas’s technical mastery brings this composition to life in ceramic form. Far from being a mere pictorial transposition, the decoration is an integral part of the form and gives the object its artistic autonomy. The signatures and marks of both artists inscribed on the reverse side embody this close collaboration.