Jacques Pouchain, Zoomorphic Vase

Jacques POUCHAIN (1925-2015)
Zoomorphic vase

Grogware with incised and modeled decoration, slip and partial enamel
Signed below the base: "JP Dieulefit"
Dieulefit, circa 1960-1970

Grogott stoneware zoomorphic vase with globular body resting on a base punctuated by short, modeled feet, giving the whole a stable footing and an almost architectural presence. The body, structured by a slight horizontal projection, develops into a narrow, then flared neck, whose irregular lip accentuates the organic character of the piece.

The decoration, treated in relief and by direct incision into the material, suggests a stylized animal figure: two circular motifs in slight relief, arranged below the neck, evoke eyes, while a prominent element at the front can be interpreted as a beak or snout. This economy of means, characteristic of the artist's vocabulary, is enough to establish an expressive presence, on the border between abstraction and figuration.

The surface, left deliberately rough, reveals the richness of chamotte stoneware, whose grainy texture is punctuated by visible inclusions. The inside of the neck is partially covered with a clear glaze, creating a subtle contrast with the natural brown-ochre tones of the clay and underlining the duality between functional interior and sculptural exterior.

Installed in Dieulefit in the early 1950s, Jacques POUCHAIN was part of the post-war revival of French ceramics, alongside a generation of creators who reinvested material and form with a new freedom. His work is distinguished by an instinctive approach to modeling and a particular attention to the texture of stoneware.

Zoomorphic forms occupy an important place in his production, testifying to an interest in suggested rather than descriptive figuration. In these works, the utilitarian object becomes a support for plastic research, where the vase's function partially fades into the background in favor of an asserted sculptural dimension.

The present model fully illustrates this approach, combining formal power, expressive modeling and economy of means, characteristic of the artist's most accomplished pieces.

Bibliography:

Pierre Staudenmeyer, La Céramique française des années 50, Norma Éditions, Paris, 2001 ;

DIANE CHATELET - IMPOSSIBLE GALLERY
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