Jean Derval : céramiste et sculpteur

Jean Derval (1925–2010) was a major figure in contemporary ceramics. After studying advertising at the École Nationale des Arts Appliqués à l'Industrie, where his classmates included Robert Picault and Roger Capron, he trained as a graphic designer and began his professional career as a poster artist.

Hired by Christofle, he created silverware designs as well as a line of everyday items made in Saint-Amand-en-Puisaye. This sanctuary of stoneware, magnified by Jean Carriès and his school at the dawn of the 20th century, was a revelation for Jean Derval. In the Maubrou-Pigaglio workshop, he discovered a world that completely satisfied him with its wealth of techniques and vast artistic possibilities. In 1947, Jean Derval reunited in Vallauris with the two other members of the ‘Les Trois Coqs’ club, Robert Picault and Roger Capron, who had founded the Callis workshop. Two years later, he joined the famous Madoura workshop, run by Suzanne Ramié and then dominated by the masterful figure of Picasso. In 1951, he founded the Portail workshop. Roger Capron called on him from 1967 to 1973, notably for the major project of the Byblos hotel in Saint-Tropez. Jean Derval went on to collaborate on prestigious architectural projects such as the Saint-Denis airport in Réunion and the Sophia-Antipolis technology park.

This book traces the major stages of an expressive, diverse and highly skilful body of work, in which copper red reigns supreme in a world devoted to earthenware – a veritable tour de force.