Artist Profile: Ceramicist Renaud Sauvé

Working from a veritable “cabin in the woods,” Renaud Sauvé of Atelier des Cent-ans creates ethereal porcelain ware with a sense of history — he’s a devotee of traditional Korean and Japanese ceramics — as well as the natural and mystical. Inspired by the hundreds of notebooks he’s filled on his travels, the one-time Cirque du Soleil prop master first sketches then throws, sculpts, etches and paints his delicate, one-of-a-kind pieces so that each has its own backstory. Renaud even takes on the alchemy of mixing his own glazes.

After a series inspired by the lyrical patterns found in antique rugs, embroidered silk and cashmere fabrics, Renaud’s next collection will be influenced by the spark of musical creativity, and the forms and shapes of musical instruments. A documentary is also in the works, shot over the past year on location in and around Renaud’s studio by filmmaker James Arthurs.