Large basalt stoneware bowl signed Louis Giraud - Vallauris, circa 1960

Sculptural and almost telluric, this large circular bowl (Ø 32 cm, 3.3 kg) in glazed basalt stoneware is the work of Louis Giraud, a Vallauris-based ceramist known for his brutalist pieces and expressive use of materials.
The satin-black surface, soft and dense as volcanic stone, is criss-crossed by a flow of vitrified lava in turquoise-green tones, with subtle nuances ranging from deep emerald to seafoam. This glassy, undulating material seems to spring from the edge and flow through the piece like a natural stream - a river, a wave, a current of energy.
On one side, a five-pointed star is discreetly modelled in the material. Opposite, a crescent moon. This discreet constellation frames the central movement and gives this bowl a rare symbolic resonance: sky, water, night, dream.
The contrast between the rigor of the outline and the freedom of the central casting gives the whole a highly successful aesthetic tension, worthy of the great ceramic research of the post-war period.
Signature
On the reverse, the bowl bears the signature Giraud Vallauris.
A powerful piece, equally at home in a minimalist or contemporary decor (where it will add an organic and poetic dimension), in a wabi-sabi or ethnic chic interior, or even in an amateur cabinet. It can be laid flat on a table or low cabinet, or displayed vertically on a suitable support, like a sculptural work in its own right.

Between the star and the moon, a river of enamel dreams its nocturnal journey. It carries silences, legends and perhaps a secret.

Ref: 4CPLX0HTG2