Pair of Large Antique French Sevres Optat Milet Ceramic Vases Art Nouveau Flowers Purple Ground

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Large pair of French Sevres ceramic vases from the atelier of Optat Milet. The baluster-form vases are decorated with tube … Read more Large pair of French Sevres ceramic vases from the atelier of Optat Milet. The baluster-form vases are decorated with tube lined embossed relief of art nouveau style flowers, in vibrant glazes of yellow, orange, cream and green hues on a rich plum purple ground. Brass mounts adorn the rim and base. Vases stand 11 1/2" height x 7" wide. The Milet family often worked in collaboration with decorators and ceramicists. These vases bear the signature 'V. Yung' for Victor Yung, one of several decorator collaborators. Both vases are marked on the base with the word Sèvres within a green oval, by the ceramist Félix Optatus Milet (for his personal production outside the Sevres Manufacture). Circa 1880-1900.

Condition: In overall good to fair antique condition with general wear/scratches in the glaze commensurate with age and use. There are some chips to the purple glaze: one on the back near a flower and some located near the rims. One vase has a tight hairline to the interior rim. The other vase has a firing flaw at the base.

Félix Optat Milet (1838-1911) began his career as a modeler for Sèvres in 1862. Despite the fact he was employed by the Sèvres factory, Optat opened his own workshop in 1866 at 6 rue Troyon, near Manufacture Nationale in Sèvres, where he employed up to fifty workers. Milet participated in many exhibitions, where his workshop won recognition and numerous awards, including a silver medal in 1884 and gold medal at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1889. His research on colors was celebrated. He worked with other Art Nouveau ceramic artists including Clément Massier (Vallauris) and Charles Field (Haviland). His son, Paul Jean Milet, took over operations shortly before the turn of the century and ran the company until 1931. See less