Vintage Art Deco sculpture "Couple of elephants" by Charles Lemanceau, France 1930

Spectacular pair of elephants made in glazed ceramic by Charles Lemanceau, one of the most important sculptors or ceramists of the French Art Deco period, particularly renowned for his animal sculptures (bestiary). The main characteristic of his figures is the stylization of the forms, as we can see in this case. The most spectacular feature is the color, a carmine red, accompanied by the glazed ceramic finish, which has an impressive luster. The couple is composed of a mother and her calf, in a loving and dynamic attitude.Glazed pottery is the product of firing a piece of clay that has been vitrified or glazed. This process, known as vitrification (or glazing), is achieved by applying a glaze made of lead or other substances. Although some sources attribute its invention to China in the third century B.C., and its arrival in the West to ancient Rome, there is older evidence from the ancient Near East, or Babylonian pottery. In fact, the use of glazed ceramics to embellish walls was used in Islamic art from the Middle Ages onwards, giving rise to tiles.Charles Lemanceau (1905 - 1980) was born and studied in Paris. He graduated from the École des Arts Appliqués and the École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs in 1923. From 1923, following the movement L'Art pour tous launched by Victor Prouvé, he worked for the art workshops of Printemps Primavera, notably with the sculptor Chassaing, and through his creations for the faience factory of Saint-Clément, as well as for the faience factory of Sainte-Radegonde and the establishments of Louis Lourioux.In 1925, he exhibited at the Salon d'Automne with artists such as Robert Mallet-Stevens, Le Corbusier, Henri Matisse, and others. During his military service, he sculpted the bust of Ambroise Paré for the Val de Grâce. In 1928, he opened a workshop in Paris, where he recreated the funeral monument of Louis Lourioux. In 1929, he won the ROBJ competition with a life-size decorative nude. He also sculpted a gazelle in 1930 for La Maîtrise, the art workshop of Galeries Lafayette, a deer in 1929, greyhounds for Pomone, the art workshop of Bon Marché, and a cat for Manufrance in 1931.Dimensions : 22,5 x 33 x 9cm. Reference : 263710