Limited Masterworks Vase Fabulous Creatures

He is considered the most gifted pupil of Johann Gregorius Höroldt and one of the few porcelain painters with a distinctive style all of his own: Adam Friedrich von Löwenfinck (1714- 1754) joined Höroldt's workshop in 1727 at the age of 13 and soon revealed a great capacity for injecting an unusual kind of momentum into ornamental decoration in blue. His fanciful schemes, for the most part chinoiseries and fabulous creatures in overglaze enamels, transport the beholder into a completely alien culture.

Ulrich Mehner affords us a glimpse of Löwenfinck's world of fantasy with this vase. The artist only has one colour at his disposal, underglaze blue, with which to breathe life into his motifs. Light gold painting is used to set accents. Blue-on-white decoration requires the utmost in artistic expertise of porcelain painters, as the metal-oxide paint is applied to the bisque-fired, unglazed porcelain and only acquires its characteristic brilliance once glost-fired. What's more, any mistakes made cannot be rectified.

Adam Friedrich von Löwenfinck did not unfortunately receive the acclaim and remuneration due to him. He left the manufactory in 1739 after lavishly decorating a vase for which he was only offered the rate for less complex work - a huge artistic loss for Meissen! His decorative schemes have nevertheless survived in our archives, allowing them to be recreated to the highest degree of artistic perfection.