Immarcescible : les émaux de Limoges et leurs collectionneurs

Exhibition at the Kugel Gallery, Paris, 22 October – 20 December 2025

In an 1866 poem addressed to the enamel painter Claudius Popelin, Théophile Gautier celebrates ‘immortal enamel’ – this unalterable vitrified material, whose brilliance defies the centuries.

At the end of the 15th century, Limoges, already renowned for its medieval enamels, developed a new method of painting on copper. Coated with coloured glass fired in a kiln, the copper produced a smooth, shiny, unalterable surface: neither light, air nor time could alter the deep colours and delicate golds enhanced with a brush. These Renaissance enamels have fascinated people for five centuries with their undimmed brilliance and their ability to stand the test of time.

This exhibition catalogue traces the history of passionate collectors. From the creation of enamels to the present day, the catalogue reviews periods of enthusiasm and neglect. In each generation, it only takes a few curious and enlightened collectors to bring this timeless beauty back to life. Among them are the various branches of the Rothschild family, J. P. Morgan, Henry Clay Frick, William Randolph Hearst, Hubert de Givenchy, Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent.

The book brings together a collection of more than seventy pieces illustrating the golden age of this production, from 1520 to 1630, by more than a dozen artists: Pierre Reymond, Pierre Courteys, Pierre, Jean III and Narde Pénicaud, Jean Miette, Jean and Susanne de Court, and Jean I and Joseph Limosin. A summary is provided on the plates by the Master of the Aeneid, and new light is shed on the series by Couly Nouailher. The mysterious Master MP, whose body of work is re-examined in this publication, stands out as one of the most talented enamellers, alongside the virtuoso and famous Léonard Limosin.