André Rozay - Ball Player - La Borne Stoneware, C. 1960

A figurative sandstone sculpture covered with black engobe, created by André Rozay (1913–1991) in La Borne, likely between the 1950s and 1970s. It depicts a young, nude athlete captured in mid-jump, arms raised to catch a ball.

The body, rendered in a dynamic pose, is animated by strong tensions and powerful volumes: a tilted torso, arms raised above the head, and legs off-balance, conveying momentum and physical effort.

The dark, slightly satiny black engobe highlights the volumes and irregularities of the modeling. The work exemplifies Rozay’s artistic language, characterized by expressive stylization, vigorous forms, and a synthetic approach to the human body.

A key figure in the revival of ceramics in La Borne—a small hamlet in the Cher department north of Bourges—André Rozay settled there in 1943 and took over Alphonse Talbot’s studio in 1958. Alongside ceramists such as Jean and Jacqueline Lerat and Vassil Ivanoff, he developed a body of work primarily devoted to stoneware, drawing in particular on the traditional wood-firing techniques specific to this pottery village.

André Rozay (1913–1991),
Ball Player — Signed “La Borne ROZAY”
Hand-built stoneware, black engobe
One-of-a-kind piece

H.: 34.5 cm; W.: 22 cm
Probable date: between 1950–1970