Sylvain Fezzoli

Atelier sur la Rivière

Porcelain maker | Morteaux-Coulibœuf, France

Shells of light

Sylvain gives a modern twist to the litophany technique
He explores porcelain through light designs
His workshop's name is inspired by its location on a riverbank in Normandy

Sylvain Fezzoli has embraced the art and craft of porcelain making to create lighting fixtures. He draws on the material's unique translucent properties to create contemporary pieces for interiors. From hanging chandeliers to table lamps, wall lights to candle holders, Sylvain likes to explore light in all its forms. He is strongly inspired by nature – the flora, the seabed. As a result, his creations are naturally reminiscent of flowers, shells or corals. He moulds the clay using wooden tools and works with the stamping porcelain method above all. With their soft and organic shapes, Sylvain's objects reflect a timeless style.

Interview

©Stéphane Thabouret

©Atelier sur la rivière

What first attracted you to porcelain crafting?: For a long time, I was looking for the most suitable material to express my creativity. Clay came as an obvious choice because of its malleability and high standards. The choice of porcelain was guided by the desire to create lamps, as it is the only clay that is translucent once fired.
When and how did you actually start working on your own?: I opened my studio in July 2009, and began with a classic production of utilitarian stoneware (bowls, cups, etc.), as well as teaching pottery in schools. In 2017, I decided to shift my approach and work solely with porcelain, creating lighting and decorative objects.
How would you define your approach?: I use the characteristics of porcelain to get the best out of it: its translucency, plasticity, and deformation during firing. I experiment with these in order to create organic lighting.
Could you recall one of the highlights of your craft career?: A moment that will remain engraved in my memory is the installation of my first large chandelier in the three-storey high atrium of a house, in the centre of Paris. It was a chandelier hung under a glass roof with a metal structure from the Atelier Eiffel at the time.

Sylvain Fezzoli is a master artisan: he began his career in 2009 and he started teaching in 2009