the vase through time
🏺 The vase through time: from everyday object to work of art
The vase is arguably one of the oldest objects in human history. While today it's mostly found on a table or shelf, adorned with a few flowers or simply displayed as decoration, its history is much deeper and more complex. The vase is not just a container: it's also a silent witness to our lifestyles, our beliefs, and our relationship with art.
An invention born of need
The history of the vase begins about ten millennia ago, in the Neolithic period. This is the time when human societies began to settle down. They were no longer content to live by hunting and gathering: they cultivated, raised livestock, and preserved food. This new way of life brought with it new needs. It was necessary to be able to store water, grains, oil, wine, and food . It was at this time that the first clay vases appeared.
Hand-shaped and then hardened over rudimentary wood fires, these early vases were simple, yet ingenious. They were created to meet practical needs, but also to last. They marked a fundamental turning point: when humankind began to transform its environment to create durable, useful, and transferable objects.
The vase, a reflection of civilizations
Very quickly, the vase went beyond its purely functional purpose. As civilizations evolved, the vase became a mirror of each people's culture . In ancient Egypt, vases were made of stone, earthenware, or alabaster. They were used in everyday life, but also in funerary rites: perfumes, ointments, or even mummified organs were preserved in them in the famous canopic jars.
In Greece, the vase became a true artistic medium . Scenes from mythology, sports, and social life were painted on it. Each shape had a function: the amphora for wine or oil, the kylix for drinking, and the krater for mixing water and wine. These vases were simultaneously utilitarian, aesthetic, and narrative.
In China, the art of vase making reached new heights with porcelain. The Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties produced vases of unparalleled finesse, with designs inspired by nature, the seasons, and poetry. Here again, the object became a symbol of refinement and social status .
In pre-Columbian, African, and Oceanic societies, vases took on a variety of forms, sometimes anthropomorphic or zoomorphic. They were often used for religious, funerary, or social rituals. Each people infused their vases with their own unique imagination and vision of the world.
A continuous artistic evolution
Over time, the vase's practical functions diminished, while its artistic dimension took over. Beginning with the Renaissance in Europe, artists and craftsmen rediscovered ancient models and created vases in bronze, marble, or porcelain, often intended to decorate palaces.
In the 18th century, large manufacturers such as Sèvres , Meissen and Wedgwood produced luxurious vases for royal courts. The object then became a symbol of prestige , reserved for the elite.
Even today, the vase continues to inspire designers. Contemporary artists such as Gaetano Pesce , Ettore Sottsass , and Jaime Hayon have reinvented the vase form, sometimes to the point of abstraction. The vase has become a sculpture, an artistic manifesto, and sometimes even a critique of consumer society.
More than an object, a symbol
The vase is not just a container. It also evokes more abstract ideas: emptiness and fullness, interior and exterior, fragility and solidity. In some cultures, it represents the human body , especially the female body, capable of containing life.
In Eastern philosophies, the emptiness of the vessel is sometimes more important than its form: it is this emptiness that allows its use. In the Bible or Greek mythology, we find stories where vases or jars play a strong symbolic role, such as Pandora's jar, synonymous with hope and misfortune.
In conclusion
From a simple container born to meet a vital need, the vase has become, over the centuries, an object full of meaning, history and beauty . It is both a trace of the past and a support for present creativity. Each vase tells a story: that of its creator, its culture, its era. And perhaps this is the true magic of this discreet object: to be at once so humble and so profound.
