Although this museum is just outside the Paris city limits, it’s quick and easy to reach with public transport, and you won’t regret taking the time to go. We returned mightily impressed… with nearly 200 photos!When we were looking for plates for our afternoon tea at La Belle Juliette, we started checking out antique markets. It was then that I realised that for years I had heard people talk of ceramics, earthenware, stoneware and porcelain without really knowing what the difference was.

Then, we heard that our friend Patrick Tourneboeuf had a new photo exhibition at the Cité de la Céramique at Sèvres, just outside the city limits (we biked there). This seems the perfect moment to take in some art and learn something too.After reading on the website that a 90-minute guided tour was available at 3pm on the Saturday we were planning to go, we decided to pedal extra fast to arrive on time! There’s also a tram stop just two minutes from the gate if you want to arrive by public transport.

As it happened, we were the only people to present themselves for the visit, meaning that we had our own private guide for 90 minutes. It was great! We were able to ask a ton of questions and take loads of photos. Her obvious enthusiasm and in-depth knowledge helped make the whole visit extremely entertaining. Check out the official site to see whether a tour is planned for your planned visit.

Before getting into the exhibition rooms, we first stopped on the stone staircase to admire the paintings in large frames. From afar they looked like copies of well-known pieces, but once close up we could see that they were actually painted onto porcelain. Our guide explained that during the 19th century, the manager of Sèvres had the reproductions made, as the colours do not change over time. However, it was a very tricky operation, as the colours were not at all the same before and after being fired, and some colours required higher temperatures than others. The artists needed a great amount of imagination and technical skill in order to get everything right, and the results are astonishing, with a slightly milky, matt aspect that you don’t usually see in painting of the era. We were impressed, and we hadn’t even entered the museum yet…In 90 minutes, we learned an awful lot. First of all, we were surprised to hear that Europe only started making porcelain in the 19th century, whereas China had had the ‘secret’ of manufacture since the 7th century. Much Chinese porcelain was imported to Europe before we learned how to make it ourselves. For a long time, Europe was only capable of manufacturing earthenware, made from coloured earth. Only once it is varnished does it have its white colour. However, earthenware is never perfectly white, and it is very breakable.The secret of porcelain comes from kaolin (china clay). In a hurry to try and produce their own porcelain, but lacking the Chinese’s secret, Europeans first produced soft-paste porcelain without kaolin, but it was fragile and easily marked. The museum has a number of fine examples, and in the 18th century a whole host of factories opened up around Paris.

Once the secret had finally been discovered, the Manufacture de Sèvres, founded in 1740 in Vincennes before being transferred to Sèvres, gained the exclusive right to produce porcelain, and the other factories were consequently closed. La Manufacture was a state-run business and remains so to this day.Each room of the museum retraces the history of ceramics, classed by place of manufacture, but a new chronological organisation is apparently being planned.

We couldn’t possible show you even a small part of the collection, but here’s a quick selection (and at the bottom of this article there’s a slideshow that you might like to check out too!).The contemporary pieces are interesting too, and we also appreciated seeing Patrick Tourneboeuf’s photos, which looked amazing enlarged and set in near-empty rooms (his book, Monumental which contains some of the photos is still available). They show the factory itself, which is behind the museum, and can only be visited upon appointment. A great insight into how the place works.The central room on the first floor is quite impressive, with its giant vases, and having your own private guide has its advantages; we were allowed to see how some vases have a mechanism built in that allows them to be slowly turned, so that the ornementation can be properly appreciated.

Our visit ended with a tour through the gift shop, probably the most expensive I have ever seen at a museum, with designer pieces costing tens of thousands of euros, as well as new reproductions of pieces on show in the museum itself. All the casts of past productions are stored safely, and they can reproduce anything you see on display… if your wallet will stretch to it.

Have a look at the photos below to see if there’s anything you’d like to buy!We suggest that a visit could be coupled with a walk and picnic in the Parc de Saint Cloud just next door. They only switch on the amazing fountains there six Sundays a year, and – lucky you – the season is about to start! Every Sunday from 29th May 2011 – 3rd July you can see them spout, gurgle and spray at 3pm, 4pm and 5pm. It’s really something special (you can read our article and see the films we made here). And if you happen to be at Sèvres on the 11th or 12th June 2011, you’ll be able to experience their special music and fountain festival, with all types of music on offer (and it’s free!) including the celebrated Orchestre Prélude de Paris.

Also, the Albert Kahn gardens are a short walk away, and you have to see them too!

In all, the Cité de la Céramique is exactly the sort of place that you should make the extra effort to see, despite it not being in the centre. Well recommended!

And here are all out photos! Click play below, then the four little arrow bottom right to go into fullscreen mode. Otherwise, the link to the gallery is here so you can choose what shots to look at.

La Cité de la céramique (here) is open every day except Tuesdays form 10am – 5pm. Closed 1st May, 25th December and 1st January.

Admission: 4.50€ / 3€

Official site: www.sevresciteceramique.fr

Facebook page (in French): here

Twitter feed (in French): here