Round dish with lobster and shells

Thomas-Victor Sergent

ca. 1870–80 · Glazed earthenware with applied decoration · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Thomas-Victor Sergent trained as a ceramicist under his father-in-law Victor Barbizet, a Parisian artisan who specialized in pieces inspired by Bernard Palissy. In this circular dish, Sergent deviates from Barbizet’s simpler format of a fish on a platter, choosing instead to encrust the entire surface of the delicately painted dish with cockles and mollusks, along with a camouflaged lobster hidden in the center.

Artist

Thomas-Victor Sergent

Date

ca. 1870–80

Medium

Glazed earthenware with applied decoration

Culture

French

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Gift of Wallis Katz, in memory of Marshall Katz, and in celebration of the Museum's 150th anniversary, 2020