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Pair of vases (third size)

Pair of vases (third size)
(Vases à oreilles)
(c. 1755)

Medium
porcelain (soft-paste)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased NGVWA with the assistance of Joan Darling to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the NGVWA, 2021
Photo: ©Sylvain Deleu 2019-20
Gallery location
17th & 18th Century Decorative Arts & Paintings Gallery
Level 2, NGV International
 

About this work

These ornamental vases were referred to as ‘vases with ears’ in reference to the way the handles extend organically out of the rim. The scrolling leaf-like forms reflect the prevailing Rococo taste of artists and designers in mid eighteenth-century France. The vases à oreilles were mainly sold in pairs or as parts of garnitures (sets of vases). The turquoise-coloured ground, known as bleu celeste, was introduced by the Vincennes Porcelain Factory in 1753 and quickly became one of its most sought after and expensive ground colours, having initially been used on a dinner service that was produced for Louis XV.

Artwork Details

Medium
porcelain (soft-paste)
Measurements
(a) 18.7 × 9.7 × 9.6 cm
(b) 18.5 × 9.7 × 9.5 cm
Place/s of Execution
Paris, France
Accession Number
2021.262.a-b
Department
International Decorative Arts
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased NGVWA with the assistance of Joan Darling to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the NGVWA, 2021
Photo: ©Sylvain Deleu 2019-20
Gallery location
17th & 18th Century Decorative Arts & Paintings Gallery
Level 2, NGV International