Restoration-period porcelain vase

This fine porcelain vase is adorned with one of the most beautiful of decorations: in an explosion of colour, the artist has painted on the front a bouquet of polychrome flowers. In the tradition of the greatest flower painters, he has skilfully harmonised the hues and the various flowers used in his composition, each rendered with realism and delicacy so convincing that one might take them for natural blooms. Plump peonies sit alongside open roses, with a few fuchsias and bindweeds completing the arrangement. On the reverse, a more restrained bouquet of poppies rises toward the neck, while a scattering of small flowering sprigs here and there finishes the ornamentation of the vase. The generously flared neck and the base are each highlighted with blue and gilt borders.
Circa mid-19th century.
Height 45 cm.