Sèvres and Savage Exhibition
Schroeder Romero & Shredder
This event has ended.
Sèvres and Savage draws on and expands Brown's exploration of transformation through the fetishization of material and how it relates to identity and class. On view are examples of 19th century Sèvres (French) porcelain alongside photographs of Versailles by Naomi Savage (American, 1927-2005). Since its founding in 1756, the Sèvres factory has consistently produced innovative porcelain objects, frequently employing some of the most important artists of the day -- from August Rodin to Louise Bourgeois -- to design forms, decorations, and figure groupings. The rage for porcelain in the early 18th century turned common clay into a commodity as precious as gold, and ownership of these objects could elevate one's social status, bringing them closer, but not too close, to royalty. Indeed, a few of the objects in Sèvres and Savage were actually owned by the French royals, including a pair of presentation vases from the collection of Louis XVIII. Everyday forms, such as baskets and creamers, were transformed into sculpture, their daily functions supplanted by their extraordinary cost, and their preciousness. Similarly, the black and white images of statues dotting the gardens of Versailles by Naomi Savage -- whose experimental nature, perhaps owed to her learning photography from her uncle Man Ray, at times led her to print images onto porcelain plaques -- are direct allusions to the mystique of the royal class.
Media
Schedule
from October 07, 2010 to November 13, 2010