the art craftsman left New York for Voulême

A few months ago, when he left the workshop he shared with some spies like himself, Éric Bonnin could enjoy the traffic on 41st Avenue, in the heart of New York , on Long Island.

From now on, when he goes from the small house lent to him to his now decorated workshop, Eric Bonnin’s peace is hardly disturbed except by the singing of the a bird or the friendly greeting of one of his rare neighbors.

A trip to New York

After twenty-five years in New York, where he carved a very fine custom, the craftsman decided to lay down his pallets, his wheel and his kilns on the remote borders of Poitou and Charente, in this town of Voulême where his distant ancestors came from.

Half-Parisian, half-Norman, Éric Bonnin fell in love with pottery somewhat by chance. He graduated from a school of plastic arts, he lived for ten years on something other than his art. A trip to New York “to improve my english” it will turn life upside down.

Silence has turned!

The young French rents, a priori for three months, a loft to an American craftsman who introduces his activity to him. Love at first sight is instant. Living on small jobs that can only be done across the Atlantic, Éric Bonnin patiently learns to choose his clay, to make his enamel… And above all to shape things born from a lump of clay: “I love to tour”, he admits.

Twenty-five years after he left, Éric feels like an immigrant again

Quickly, the French craftsman won over wealthy buyers across the United States. Orders are increasing significantly with the Covid crisis and the return to “cocooning”. So that it does not take time to create new models.

The enamelware has just gone through its second cooking.
© (Photo NR-CP, Vincent Buche)

Observed with saturation, Éric Bonnin, who has just passed the sixty mark, decides to intervene: “Two years ago, I made 10,000 pieces by myself. He was tired. » Here he is currently settling in Voulême, together with his octogenarian mother and other family members who, like him, have come to rediscover their family roots.

Salon made in France

He had to relearn the French way of life, which was so far removed from American ways: “I’m a stranger again”, Eric joked.

For now, the ceramist Poitevin continues to serve his American clients who remained loyal to him after his departure. But he hopes to quickly conquer new clients in France. To do this, he will benefit from a nice helping hand from the regional chamber of commerce that accepted his application, together with 23 other artisans from the region, to participate in the Made in France Exhibitionin Paris, Porte de Versailles, from November 8 to 11, 2024.

Modern clay, 1, rue des Tilleuls, Tardiveau, 86400 Voulême. Website under construction. Contact email: [email protected] or phone: phone. 06.80.89.75.21.