Jean Cocteau Glazed Earthenware Vase – Roche Bobois

This Jean Cocteau decorated vase by Roche Bobois is a striking example of fine decorative ceramics rooted in mid-century French avant-garde artistry. The vessel is rendered in glazed earthenware with a warm taupe ground, featuring two abstracted facial profiles rendered in fluid and confident line, a hallmark of Cocteau’s graphic sensibility. Geometric diamond motifs in soft grey overlay the opposing face, the tones blending seamlessly into the glaze for an effect that is both subtle and sophisticated.

The vase bears Cocteau’s signature and is numbered 27 from a limited edition of 1,000, produced by Roche Bobois to commemorate the centenary of Cocteau’s birth. The Roche Bobois/Paris mark appears on the base.

Jean Cocteau (1889–1963) was one of France’s most celebrated polymaths – poet, novelist, playwright, filmmaker, and visual artist – whose fluid draftsmanship and surrealist sensibility made him a defining figure of the 20th-century avant-garde. His works are held in the collections of MoMA, the National Gallery of Art, and the Courtauld Institute.