Ceramics By Denise Gatard (1921-1992)

Enamelled ceramic vase by Denise Gatard (1921-1992), née Jouve, sister of Georges Jouve. Denise Jouve was born on August 17, 1908 [N 2] in Fontenay-sous-Bois. She was the daughter of Jean Esprit Jouve, architect and decorator for the Grands Magasins Dufayel department store, and the older sister of Georges Jouve, a ceramist trained at the École Boulle. A graduate of the École des Arts Appliqués on Rue Duperré, she joined the workshop of Jean Dunand in 1929, one of the leading figures of the Art Deco movement and a master of lacquer. She learned this technique, worked with gold powder and eggshell, and participated in the creation of the decorative panels for the ocean liner Normandie. In 1931, she married Jean Gatard, with whom she had two daughters. They spent time in Indochina (1933-1937), a country that profoundly affected her. There, she drew, mainly in charcoal, and sculpted clay, drawing inspiration from the faces around her. From 1938 to 1941, she continued her work as a sculptor during a stay in Algeria and Morocco. The winter of 1941 brought the family back to France. Jean Gatard joined the Resistance and became part of the Army's Special Services; arrested by the Germans, he was executed on August 6, 1943.[2] Denise lived through this period of hiding in Limoges, sculpting clay, then returned to Paris with her children. She continued her work on materials and color, starting with the chemistry of glazes, and introduced gold and iron oxide with a third firing. She asserts her style. She presents her first pieces (bowls, vases, lamps, etc.) at the Galerie de l'Arcade in Paris as early as 1947, and later, at the Galerie du Siècle in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, she refines and lightens these earthenware creations. She begins with unique, coil-built pieces, then refines her work, producing small series, stamped or cast. She works for major fashion designers (including Nina Ricci), creates miniature bas-relief buttons, and works with liquid gold, modulating the nuances to achieve a golden-brown enamel. She emphasizes the forms with a black line of iron oxide to sharpen them. Her forms become more elongated. Initially, she has to fire her pieces outdoors, but she acquires her first kiln in 1947. In 1950, she marries the decorator Maurice Pré.[3] Her studio is then located in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. Later, she expanded her workshop to number 111 rue Saint-Antoine. Her production increased significantly, and she employed up to three assistants, particularly for mold making. Finally, her last workshop was located at number 10 rue de Buci. Always on the lookout for new materials, she created large insect sculptures in molten melchior and other materials, and continued to make jewelry, maintaining a ceramic base. Throughout her career, she exhibited regularly at the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs and the Salon des Métiers d'Art, and held solo exhibitions. Her works were sold in France and abroad. Her pieces circulated particularly in the United States, where they were part of major collections from the period between 1960 and 1965 (such as the collection of Lee F. Mindel, a New York architect, exhibited at the Phillips headquarters by Christie's in 2016). Jeanne Gatard owns a representative collection of jewelry. Denise Gatard's work is featured in architectural journals of the time as well as in books. In 2009 and 2010, a posthumous exhibition of her works was held in the Mouvements Modernes and Anne-Sophie Duval galleries in Paris.