Pair Of Children's Bookends - Jim Sévellec - Henriot Factory - Brittany

Henriot Factory. Polychrome earthenware, circa 1930. This piece will be on display at the Quimper Antiques Fair from November 7th to 9th, 2025. Jim Sévellec (1897-1971): Eugène Sévellec, known as Jim Sévellec, was born and raised in Camaret-sur-Mer, the son of a naval officer. Two factors fostered his artistic vocation: his father, who encouraged the freedom of his aesthetic expression, and Camaret, which at the time was a meeting place for artists from diverse backgrounds. Among them were the writer Saint-Pol-Roux, and in the field of painting, Charles Cottet and Robert Antral. From a very young age, he sketched life in the port, and under the influence of Saint-Pol-Roux, he left for Paris to study art under Louis-Marie Désiré-Lucas. During the First World War, he was mobilized in 1916 into the infantry and served, among other things, as an interpreter for American and Scottish soldiers. It was in this capacity that his comrades gave him his artist's name, "Jim," which was easier to pronounce than Eugène. After his military service, he attended the PTT (Post, Telegraph, and Telephone) school and, at the same time, frequented Parisian artistic circles. In 1924, he was assigned to monitor submarine cables in Brest, marking his return home and the beginning of a rich and prolific artistic career. With friends, he created an artistic group called "La Phalange Bretonne" (The Breton Phalanx), and he exhibited at the Galerie Saluden in Brest. Well-established in the local art scene, he taught at the Brest School of Fine Arts while continuing his work at the Post Office. Jim Sévellec began his collaboration with the Henriot factory in Quimper in 1928. From then on, while never ceasing to paint, he provided numerous designs for Henriot's production. In 1936, along with René-Yves Creston, he was appointed an official painter of the French Navy. For the Tanguy Tower Museum, he recreated the history of the city of Brest through dioramas. He also created several decorative ensembles for hotels and restaurants in Brest, Camaret, and Dinard.