Emile Jacobs French, 1850-1919
Mermaid Plaque,
c. 1900
c. 1900
Emile Jacobs for Jacob Frêres (et Fils)
12 inch diameter
12 inch diameter
Crystaline-glazed porcelain
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With artful and sensuous handling of material, Emile Jacob demonstrates his life-long love of learning with a technical mastery of porcelain and glazes as well as an awareness of current...
With artful and sensuous handling of material, Emile Jacob demonstrates his life-long love of learning with a technical mastery of porcelain and glazes as well as an awareness of current artistic trends such as Japonisme and l’Art Nouveau. From a bird’s-eye view perspective popularized by Japanese wood block prints circulating in Europe, Jacob immediately confronts the viewer with the sea. The variegated blues and greens take on every murky depth, every iridescence produced on a sun-filled water’s surface; while the suggestion of movement created by undulating patterns of water morphs into sand ridges caused by breaking waves as the viewer nears for a closer examination. The effect is remarkable. Upon closer scrutiny, the abstracted ridges create an affect of being even farther away from the sea, as if high in flight. The same captivating qualities are achieved by the opaque and crystalline glazes to suggest the interior of an oyster’s shell. The ultimate pearl, a female nude, is voluptuously modeled; fusing as one with her seascape, her hair spreads out in wavy tendrils and her graceful, long fingers wrap around the plaque’s edge.
Literature
Literature: Arthur, French Art Nouveau Ceramics: An Illustrated Dictionary, 2015, p. 213 for a similar example.