René Buthaud

A major figure in decorative arts during the inter-war periods René Buthaud (1886–1986) developed an interest in ceramics upon finishing his studies at the École des beaux-arts de Paris and the École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs, before being mobilised for the war. At times figurative and at other times geometrical or abstract, his vases met with great success at the Salon d’automne and the Salon des artistes décorateurs in 1920, where he exhibited works with his friends Jean Dunand and Alfred Janniot. From 1928 his works were distributed by the Rouard gallery, and he participated in most Salons as well as the major events of the time: the 1925 International Exhibition of Decorative Arts, the 1931 Colonial Exhibition, and the 1937 Exhibition of Art and Technology. Acting as technical director of the Sainte-Radegonde art pottery works for Primavera from 1923 to 1926, he was especially known and appreciated by the public for his great mastery of crackle enamel, a technique he reintroduced in France. Text in English and French.