The Town, The People and The Pottery
Volume 23 Number 2/3
July/August 2021
July/August 2021
The western-most part of the continent of Europe, this is a 1683 map of Brittany. Quimper is located to the left of center, above a small island and noted with its name at that time...Quimper-Corentin.
Quimper...pronounced "kem-pair"...is a town in northwestern France. It is also a people and a pottery.
To the people of Quimper, the town name is Kemper, which in their language describes a confluence of rivers. ("Quimper" is a somewhat nonsensical rendition as not all the Breton dialects have a "Q" and a true French pronunciation would be different from the actual "kem-pair"). At any rate, "confluence of rivers" is an apt description, as the town is situated at the juncture of two rivers, the Odet and the Steir. Two other rivers, the Jet and the Frout, are close-by, but travel underground through the town limits. Historically, this close proximity to rivers meant an ideal place to establish a pottery factory and thus, Quimper has been a pottery town for centuries. Its "recent" history of continuous pottery production begins in 1708. (Previous accounts put the date as 1690, but history is not written in stone and recent findings have provided further information).
By the last decade of the nineteenth century, three pottery factories were operating in the town of Quimper. One was the Porquier factory, another was known as the Grande Maison or De la Hubaudière factory, and the third, owned by Jules Henriot, was called the Faïencerie d’Art Breton. Tin-glazed earthenware, known in France as faïence, was a popular product, especially pieces that were hand-painted with scenes depicting life in the region of Brittany.
The making of faïence is an art. Especially in the early days, prior to the introduction of more modern methods, when both the technical and artistic skills necessary to make a piece of faïence were quite daunting. Extremely difficult to master its making, I've been known to liken faïence to being the "puff pastry" of pottery production.
The use of an opaque tin glaze is one factor that distinguishes faïence from other types of pottery...pieces made by this process were known as faïence in France, Spain, Germany, and Austria; in the Netherlands, they were called Delft; in England, the term was Delftware; and in Renaissance Italy, such pieces were called maiolica...not to be confused with majolica, that's actually a trade name of the Minton pottery in England for a Victorian-era product made using substantially different glazes and production methods.
The tradition of Quimper faïence production continues today. But much like the comparison of a Model T with a current Ford Motor Company product, today’s Quimper is very different from vintage Quimper. In many fields of collecting there is a line of demarcation; for Quimper pottery that line is World War II. Modern techniques and machinery introduced in the days after World War II resulted in the creation of a different product. Vintage Quimper refers to pieces made prior to that time period; later production falls into the collectible genre.
Here at www.oldquimper.com, we specialize in vintage Quimper and invite you to come along as we further explore old Quimper...The Town, The People, and The Pottery. If you've just joined us, since 1999 we've been using these pages to extol upon the beauty and intrigue of vintage Quimper pottery and, at the same time, do some "traveling"...and, indeed, over the years, we have visited some of the most picturesque towns of Brittany...each one delightfully different.
Each month, this depiction of King Gradlon by Quimper-born artist Pierre Toulhoat (1923-2014) will herald in a new article about Quimper...The Town, The People and The Pottery.
For the past several issues of www.oldquimper.com, we've been presenting a series of articles designed to provide a primer on the history of Quimper...a sort of abridged and updated version of the story behind The Town, The People and The Pottery. We hope to educate collectors...correcting some long-standing and stubborn misinformation...so that fans of Quimper pottery will become more comfortable with the whys and wherefores of Quimper and what makes it so special. It's also a good lesson in remembering that history is not written in stone and that our knowledge of it can indeed change.
Reminder: in many instances, clicking on the photos will lead to a larger image and please take note that the names and dates given may be entirely different from what you hear or read from various sources. This is an updated and corrected history of Quimper pottery, designed to provide a clear illustration of how styles and techniques from Provence, Nevers and Rouen came together to create the enduring fascination that is Quimper pottery.
In case you just joined our on-going discussion of the history of Quimper pottery…we've made our way from the very beginning of "modern-day" Quimper pottery...Pierre Bousquet's founding of a factory in 1708...following his enterprise through the French Revolution, the beginnings of local competition in the marketplace and the inevitable effects of death and taxes. We focused first on the factory that started it all...what came to be popularly known as HB Quimper or La Grande Maison and then turned to those that followed...the Eloury/Porquier pottery, and then after that, another competing pottery...one that came to be known as Henriot.
Since we're reviewing the history of Quimper's potteries in chronological order based on the date of their opening, the next up was the Fouillen pottery with Keraluc, HB-Henriot, FAB and some independent studios slated among the subjects to follow.
Now into our 23rd year of monthly articles about Quimper, for the past few issues we have been documenting the history of the Fouillen pottery. Previously, we had gone over biographical information...Paul Fouillen was born in 1899, first came to Quimper in the early 1920s, etc. We then began looking at examples of his work while employed at the HB pottery in an effort to trace his path from the pieces he created during his earlier days as an employee at HB to those made when he was running his own business.
In case you just joined our on-going discussion of the history of Quimper pottery…we've made our way from the very beginning of "modern-day" Quimper pottery...Pierre Bousquet's founding of a factory in 1708...following his enterprise through the French Revolution, the beginnings of local competition in the marketplace and the inevitable effects of death and taxes. We focused first on the factory that started it all...what came to be popularly known as HB Quimper or La Grande Maison and then turned to those that followed...the Eloury/Porquier pottery, and then after that, another competing pottery...one that came to be known as Henriot.
Since we're reviewing the history of Quimper's potteries in chronological order based on the date of their opening, the next up was the Fouillen pottery with Keraluc, HB-Henriot, FAB and some independent studios slated among the subjects to follow.
Now into our 23rd year of monthly articles about Quimper, for the past few issues we have been documenting the history of the Fouillen pottery. Previously, we had gone over biographical information...Paul Fouillen was born in 1899, first came to Quimper in the early 1920s, etc. We then began looking at examples of his work while employed at the HB pottery in an effort to trace his path from the pieces he created during his earlier days as an employee at HB to those made when he was running his own business.
We wrote of his initial work at HB...
...when in the early 1920s, he was responsible for completing the central motifs of some of HB's most elaborate pieces...like this dramatic charger made following a design by René Quillivic.
Once promoted to be the head of one of the factory's artists' studios, Fouillen produced an incredible body of original designs...
...including this pair of plates that give a decidedly modern interpretation to the traditional motifs of Breton peasants.
We also showed some of his designs for Odetta, HB's line of stoneware art pottery. Paul Fouillen was the creator of an astonishing number of different Odetta designs...75 in all ! Odetta required different and more costly materials and techniques; produced for a limited time, it was marketed to an upscale strata of society. Here are two additional examples of Fouillen's Odetta designs...
We wrote about how in 1926, Fouillen...while still employed at HB...partnered with his brother-in-law and rented a nearby garage where they produced items on glass, wood, leather and metal. Here's an example of their production in wood...
...a bench with a design applied using pyrography. Pyrography...decorating an object by burning in a design...particularly on wood...was very popular at the time and Fouillen's versions were well-received. Fouillen produced items using basic construction methods in keeping with the "Arts and Crafts" style movement of the era.
The success of what had been a second job allowed Paul to purchase a building located alongside the Odet River in Locmaria's Place Styvel.
...the building is still there...
...in need of a bit of freshening up, but the indication of what went on behind the door is evident...
...by the decorative details...
...painted on the exterior...
...original touches of Paul Fouillen that include....
...the pottery's unique doorbell !
In our previous issue, we discussed how, soon after the birth of their son, Maurice, Paul and his wife Anna left their jobs at the HB factory to fully embrace their entrepreneurial leap of faith.
In the early days of the Fouillen factory, production continued to be limited to decorating other supports. It would wait until the mid-1930s when, using the kiln at Henriot, Fouillen began to make pottery on his own.
The Breton-inspired motifs featured in his pyrography designs were now produced on pottery...painted using the underglaze technique which was less costly than the overglaze method. Some of these earlier pieces were accented with blue paint...a paint that had a tendency to flake. The pieces of this era are generally signed PFouillen within the decorative motif and on the reverse, the location of the firing...Henriot Quimper.
The curator of the Musée de la Faïence, Bernard Verlingue , notes that these Henriot examples are pièces uniques...meaning one-of-a-kind rather than mass produced items. ( Shameless plug...this piece is available for purchase on this issue's Shop in Your Slippers link ).
The 1940s brought the Nazi Occupation...resulting in Fouillen's business being severely curtailed. Last month's issue ended with Paul Fouillen's faïence production essentially put on hold, however during the war, he continued with existing supplies to produce a limited amount of pottery and pyrography items.
One of the few Paul Fouillen pieces made during World War II, this plate was made on November 19, 1943.
Another Henriot-fired example, this vase features an engraved decoration and is dated October 6, 1944...just shy of two months after Quimper's liberation.
When the War was officially over, Fouillen introduced a revolutionary element into the world of Quimper pottery...the installation of an electric kiln. Revamping his studio into a true, stand-alone pottery with the help of his friend, Victor Lucas, the Fouillen pottery was the first in Quimper to install electric kilns.
The modern equipment provided the previously unheard-of ability to truly regulate the temperature of the kiln.
Above is a vintage image of the studio of the Fouillen pottery...it is from here that Paul Fouillen created his contributions to Quimper faïence's embrace of a post-war modern spirit.
Some examples of Paul Fouillen pottery pieces from last half of the 1940s...
This vase is among the early pieces made after the end of World War II; it is dated July 6, 1945
The following examples were created in the later half of the 1940s and give a glimpse of the evolution of the Fouillen style:
A Fouillen bird is a species apart ...
...as are the green mice painted circling a center medallion on this piece.
Here, a plate painted with a quartet of colorful birds surrounding a Breton-style design.
Fouillen's fish take on fanciful forms...
...and this owl...featured on a vase dated November 7, 1947...illustrates Fouillen's interest in the Cubist Movement.
A year later, came this plate with its graphic image of a snake and an antelope.
On some his pieces from the later half of the 1940s, Fouillen's treatment of Bretons also received the Cubist treatment...
...resulting in this thoroughly modern petite bretonne wearing the coiffe worn in the Pont-l'Abbé region...
...and Breton couples that are far from traditional !
Some of the earliest examples of Quimper faïence represent saints; in 1947, Paul Fouillen gave a modern spin to the classic subject of Saint Anne teaching the Virgin Mary to read.
Botticelli's Birth of Venus gets a Paul Fouillen update in this example from the latter half of the decade.
Breton "born and bred", Fouillen couldn't resist giving a colorful interpretation of the ancient menhirs that dot the Breton countryside.
A visit to the "reserves" of the Musée départemental breton...the building where they store items from their vast collection when they are not actively on display...is a real treat ! There are treasures at every turn...on every shelf...and just about every nook and cranny...including these Paul Fouillen pieces:
Two Fouillen vases wait for "their call to duty" in this shelf in the reserve...the vase on the left is dated August 3, 1948.
Casually laid out waiting to be cataloged, a delightful Fouillen fish service...consisting of one serving piece and twelve plates...each with a different scene of marine life.
Next, we'll look at Fouillen's work from the 1950s and the further evolution of his distinctive Quimper style.
That's it for this issue...our exploration of Brittany...its towns, its people and its pottery...will continue in our next webisode. We publish a new issue on or about the first of each month. If you would like an email reminder when a new issue comes out, please contact us at oldquimper@yahoo.com. ...and be sure to check your computer settings...because sometimes unless you change them, we end up in your SPAM folder !