Sèvres Vase

Louis-Rémy Robert was the head of the painting and gilding studios at the Sèvres porcelain works. This majestic depiction of a vase is part of a series of images that Robert exhibited at the Exposition Universelle of 1855, in Paris, to showcase outstanding Sèvres pieces. Robert set the vase against a display of drapery to dramatize its sculptural form and included a small measuring guide to indicate its noble scale. The vessel's gleaming surface, exquisite painting, and finely modeled detail are enhanced by the use of a glass negative yet softened by the matte surface of the salted paper print. Although made for publicity and documentation, the photograph itself achieves the status of an art object.