Paul BONIFAS (1893-1967) Stoneware vase with... Lot 172

Paul BONIFAS (1893-1967) Stoneware vase with glossy black enamel. Incised signature under the base : " Bonifas France ". Height 40 - Diameter 28 cm (chips) Paul BONIFAS was born in Geneva, where he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts, then at the Swiss School of Ceramics. He created his first workshop in Versoix in 1914 where he collaborated with many artists and was quickly decorated. In 1920 he moved to Paris and in 1921 became the editorial secretary of the magazine L'Esprit nouveau and worked with Amédée OZENFANT, COCTEAU and LE CORBUSIER, who described BONIFAS as a "ceramist of purism". In 1922 he took over a workshop in Ferney-Voltaire where he produced pieces combining great formal rigor with classical Chinese references, close to the ceramists Jean LUCE and Robert LALLEMAND. This mixture of modernity and classicism is characteristic of his work. He worked with glazed earthenware, perpetuating traditional techniques, but also with stoneware from 1924 onwards, as well as with glazed black earthenware and earthenware. Paul BONIFAS participated in the International Exhibition of Arts and Techniques in 1937 where he presented several pieces including a vase currently kept at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris. Because of the war, he closed his workshop in 1940 and diversified his activities. In 1945, he left for the United States, first for the University of Washington, then for the University of Seattle where he taught until 1959. During his lifetime, Paul BONIFAS entered the collections of prestigious museums. His work can be found in numerous private collections in Europe, the United States and Japan, as well as in many museums in France such as the Musée des Arts Décoratifs de Paris, the Centre National d'Arts Plastiques, the Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres, the Centre Georges Pompidou, the Mobilier National, and the Musée Galliera, as well as in Switzerland, the United States and Portugal. Some pieces in private hands are classified as Historic Monuments (including a vase, Hôtel de Massa, current headquarters of the Société des Gens de Lettres)