Suite of Vases

Trained as a sculptor, Saly etched a series of 30 vase designs while studying at the Académie de France in Rome. Designing ornamental vases or urns was particularly popular during the mid-18th century, as the motif allowed artists the opportunity to demonstrate their skill and imagination. In these vases, Saly inventively incorporated animals, mythical creatures, faces, and grotesques. After his return to Paris, the publication announcement for the Suite of Vases endorsed the etchings as an indication of the sculptor’s ingenuity and freedom of design. The vase designs also nourished an appetite for the revival of classical elements, or Neoclassicism, in decorative arts that developed in the mid-18th century.