Denbac

Denbac is the brand name under which the French ceramist René Denert and the manager René-Louis Balichon produced and sold their semi-industrial output of decorative and advertising stoneware. The two men were associated from 1921 in the Société Denert et Balichon, based in Vierzon in the Cher department of central France. The brand therefore belongs to the tradition of French art stoneware (grès) that flourished in the early twentieth century, and its name is a contraction of the two partners' surnames. The story begins in 1908, when René Denert set up a ceramics workshop in Vierzon, drawn by the town's long-established ceramic industry, which had been active since the beginning of the nineteenth century, and by his own experience as a ceramist at Golfe-Juan. René-Louis Balichon joined the enterprise in 1910, and in 1921 the business was formally constituted as the Société Denert et Balichon. Production was at first essentially artistic, and the firm built a vast catalogue of vases and decorative objects in stoneware marketed under the Denbac brand. It later expanded into series of advertising pieces, notably flasks for liquor merchants. In 1933 the company took part in creating the Jardin de l'abbaye de Vierzon, a public garden project in its home town. After the death of its founder in 1937, the business declined. It was dormant during the Second World War, restarted with difficulty after the Liberation of France in a more industrial form, and definitively ceased production in 1952. The workshops and the remains of the kilns, now private property, are still visible in Vierzon on rue Camille Desmoulins. Today Denbac is remembered as a collectible French art-pottery brand. Its output is documented by the municipal museum of Vierzon and by specialist references on French stoneware, and a dedicated enthusiast site serves as the brand's official online presence. The brand is no longer commercially active.

Denbac is the brand under which the ceramist René Denert and the manager René-Louis Balichon, associated from 1921 in the Société Denert et Balichon in Vierzon, produced and marketed their semi-industrial output of decorative and advertising stoneware. René Denert created a ceramics workshop in Vierzon in 1908, taking advantage of the important ceramic activity that had existed in the town since the beginning of the nineteenth century and of his experience as a ceramist at Golfe-Juan. After the arrival of René-Louis Balichon in 1910, this enterprise became in 1921 the Société Denert et Balichon. Production, at first essentially artistic, then comprised a vast catalogue of vases and decorative objects in stoneware marketed under the Denbac brand, before developing towards series of advertising pieces such as flasks for liquor merchants. In 1933, the company took part in the creation of the Jardin de l'abbaye de Vierzon. After the death of its founder in 1937, the activity declined. The enterprise was dormant during the Second World War, restarted with difficulty at the Liberation of France in a more industrial form, and definitively ceased production in 1952. The workshops and the remains of the kilns, now private property, are still visible in Vierzon, rue Camille Desmoulins.

• 1952

  Production definitively ceases.

• 1937

  Death of founder René Denert; the activity declines.

• 1933

  The company takes part in the creation of the Jardin de l'abbaye de Vierzon.

• 1921

  The business becomes the Société Denert et Balichon; the Denbac brand is used for its stoneware production.

• 1910

  René-Louis Balichon joins the enterprise.

• 1908

  René Denert creates a ceramics workshop in Vierzon.

Semi-industrial French art stoneware brand, known for decorative vases and advertising ceramics.

• Decorative stoneware vases

• Decorative stoneware objects

• Advertising flasks for liquor merchants

1. 1Denbac — Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org
2. 2Denbac — Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Site consacré à la manufacture Denbacsandre74.free.fr
4. 4Denbac sur le site du Musée municipal de Vierzonwebmuseo.com
5. 5Denbac sur le site Faïences anciennesfaiences-anciennes.eu