Ontwerp voor de beschildering van een porseleinen 'vase Chaumont' te Sèvres 1903

This design for a Sèvres vase by Anatole-Alexis Fournier is a delicate dance of intention and accident. The paper’s ground peeks through the form of the vase, creating a ghostly, almost translucent effect. You can imagine the artist carefully plotting the placement of each bloom, yet allowing the medium, perhaps watercolor or gouache, to have its say. There’s a tension here between the decorative arts and fine art. The surface is almost entirely covered with a pattern of flowers, but rendered with such a light touch, they seem to float on the vase, rather than smother it. Look closely at the way each petal is formed. The artist hasn't laboured over perfect representation. Instead, there is a freedom and an energy, an acceptance of the inherent beauty of the material. It makes me think of other artists who blurred the lines between design and painting, like William Morris. But while Morris sought to democratize art through design, Fournier seems more interested in the simple pleasure of seeing how far he can push the boundaries of both. It’s this ambiguity, this playful exploration, that makes the piece so engaging.