Sevres Porcelain
Sevres Porcelain is known for its high quality, gilded and hand-painted decoration and wealthy and aristrocratic clientele, the French Sevres Porcelain Factory was founded in 1738 at Chateau de Vincennes, by local craftsmen from a nearby porcelain factory at Chantilly.
Louis XV, the French “Sun King”, was a partial owner of the Sevres works and granted them a twenty year monopoly along with the title of Royal Manufacturer of Porcelain. Circa 1759 the king assumed control of the Sevres operation, believing himself the best ambassador for its wares. Under his leadership and patronage the Sevres reputation for deep colors and the finest glazes spread across Europe.
Originally the high quality kaolin clay necessary to produce Sevres porcelain was imported from Austria. Soon, however, a kaolin deposit was discovered near the town of Limoges. This led to the rise of competing porcelain manufacturers seeking to breach the royal monopoly. Louis XV eased his restrictive laws but insisted that Sevres retain certain trade secrets, such as the processes used for gilding its porcelains, to ensure its status as France’s premier porcelain.
The French Revolution of 1789 to 1793 plunged the nation into social chaos and economic depression and nearly ruined the Sevres factory. The government seized the factory in 1798 and tried to operate it with a much reduced workforce and severe shortages of both materials and financing. Circa 1800 Alexander Brongniart was appointed administrator of the Sevres factory. A man of diverse interests and education, Brongniart was a scientist with little or no experience with porcelain design or manufacturing. His new and innovative approach, however, resulted in both more efficient production methods and a new wave of design creativity enabling the factory to find its footing and begin recovery from the national woes inflicted upon it.
As part of this process Sevres began to reduce its dependence on its aristrocratic clientele by developing more simple yet high quality pieces for a broader section of society and fulfilling market demands for new presentation dishes and specialized containers for new food and drink preferences. The factory also invested in glaze and kaolin research and expanded its decorating department. These innovative methods allowed Sevres to thrive throughout the 19th century under a series of powerful rulers and constantly changing fashions. Well known artists such as Fragonard worked at Sevres, and the factory’s focus on premium production and consequently high prices enabled them to attract the very best decorators.