Cuvette à Tombeau

Created by the young New York-born artist Francesco DiMattio, Cuvette á Tombeau features an intricately painted bird-on-branch design beneath a smooth glazed finish, inspired by the 18th-century 'flower vases' produced by the manufacture nationale de Sèvres. After that, the resemblances to rococo porcelain end. In their place, a twisting leopard-print double helix loops down to join the base of a corraline growth topped by organic tubes, all perched on a pink cushion balancing on three stubby feet. The piece is typical of DiMattio's work, which splices classical porcelain design with kitsch forms to create playfully incongruous ceramics. The Cuvette joins works by Bernard Leach, Michael Cardew and others in Paisley Museum's nationally important collection of ceramics.