Porcelain Plaque "sleeping Love", Signed M. Brière, Circa 1886

Rectangular hand-painted porcelain plaque, presented as a wall picture and set within a moulded, gilded wooden frame. This corresponds to the well-documented late-19th-century tradition of framed painted plaques made for decorative interiors, frequently encountered on the art market (signed plaques, often executed in monochrome or polychrome).

The composition depicts The Sleeping Cupid (winged putto) reclining in a wooded landscape, his bow placed nearby. The theme belongs to the neo-18th-century taste (in the spirit of Boucher/Fragonard and related printed models), widely adopted in Belle Époque decorative arts—particularly for painted porcelain plaques intended for framing.

Painted in brown camaïeu / sanguine manner (a nuanced monochrome), focusing on subtle tonal modelling to render flesh, foliage and depth. The glazed surface and refined brushwork are consistent with a skilled porcelain decorator’s practice (fine enamel/petit-feu tradition as commonly described for painted plaques), with a miniature-like approach in the graduated shading. Comparable market descriptions for Limoges and other signed plaques frequently emphasise this camaïeu technique.

Signed at lower right: “Mᵒ Brière” (Monsieur abbreviated), a format consistent with certain porcelain decorators’ signing habits in the second half of the 19th century. The ensemble can be dated circa 1886 on stylistic and technical grounds, matching the period in which framed painted plaques were produced and sold as decorative pictures.

Set in a gilded wooden frame; the reverse shows clip fastening typical of wall-mounted decorative plaques.

Dimensions:
Frame - 48 × 55 cm
Porcelain plaque - 30 × 40 cm