London

Anne Sophie Boulogne

Purindigo

Ceramicist | Saint-Brès, France

A luminous echo of marine life

Anne-Sophie’s ceramics are inspired by ocean creatures
Her pieces feature the organic yet geometrical shapes found in nature
She learned by watching ceramists at work in their studios

Anne-Sophie Boulogne fell in love with ceramics as a child and taught herself while pursuing a more conventional career path, progressively easing into her artisan journey before finally opening her studio in 2015. Her approach is experimental. “Clay is a very demanding material, but it also allows for a lot of freedom," she says. From her studio in Saint-Brès near Montpellier, she creates tableware and sculptures inspired by the mysterious fauna living in seabeds, as well as lamps that mimic bio-luminescent marine organisms. All of them bear her signature technique blending a classic porcelain delicateness with an organic, nature-inspired texture.

Interview

Is your work traditional or innovative?: It’s both. On one hand, my medium is porcelain, a very demanding material technically speaking, so I follow all the traditional rules. However, I still get to experiment and innovate when it comes to creating new shapes and textures.
Where do your ideas come from?: Marine life in general and, more particularly, the seabed. It’s such a mysterious, unknown world to us, with such fascinating life. Its creatures, their shapes, their functions, to me symbolise nature at its most perfect.
What’s a special moment in your career?: The Compagnie du Ponant, which curates naval trips to exceptional destinations, recently purchased three of my pieces to be exhibited aboard its new ship, the Commandant Charcot. It’s a hybrid polar ship, so that fits my work perfectly.
What is artisanal excellence according to you?: To me it’s a bit of a paradox: it’s about feeling the artisan’s hand rather than using moulds that will result in perfection. It might not look flawless, but the uniqueness and soul of a piece are in that “imperfection”.

Anne Sophie Boulogne is an expert artisan: she began her career in 1997