One of my private indulgences is surfing online for porcelain. On one of these haunts, I came across a remake of Jean Cocteau’s ceramic art work “Protée” from 1960, picked up by the French porcelain manufacturer Raynaud.
Protée, or Proteus, is the ancient Greek god of the sea or god of rivers. He is in charge of the constantly changing and transformative nature of water. According to Wikipedia, “the adjective protean, means “versatile”, “mutable”, or “capable of assuming many forms”. the breath.
What a perfect description of the breath!
The image on Jean Cocteau’s plate is Proteus exhaling with a blow, presumably moving water into motion.