Jean BESNARD (1889-1958)

The son of the painter Albert Besnard (1849-1934) and the sculptress Charlotte Dubray (1855-1931), Jean Besnard first studied Savoyard pottery technique, later developing his own style of pottery; unornamented, pure of form and strikingly modern.
Each of his pieces was scarified and coated in enamel, a material he understood intimately.
During the 1920s, Jean Besnard worked in Paris, in his workshop rue Campagne Première. He created small kiln ceramics that he either turned himself, or had made to his instructions. His style was characterized by his use of enamel and the way he put emphasis on the material substance of each piece, whether he incised the clay, incrusted it or knurled it.
Besnard notably invented ‘shrivelled’ enamel: a technique that made use of the way enamel, once posed on the surface of a piece, can retract slightly, leaving a delicate pearly skin.
His favourite colours were white, brown and turquoise, but he also used gold that he would place in bands around the bellies of his vases. 
Besnard primarily concentrated on simple forms (vases, lampstands and cups) that he would re-invent to create masks, stylized animals and female forms.
His pieces were greatly appreciated by Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Jacques Adnet, and are present in a number of important collections.