This joyful Henri Matisse pottery collection is your new summer entertaining essential

Being the great-grandson of French painter Henri Matisse carries with it, let’s just say, some creative pressure. That’s why Alex Matisse forged his own path.

In 2009, after a ceramics apprenticeship, Matisse moved to a former tobacco farm in North Carolina and set up his own pottery studio, East Fork.

‘For a long time, my family's legacy felt more like a shadow than something to celebrate, so much so that I needed to disappear in the mountains of North Carolina to find my way out of it,’ Matisse says.

Over the last 16 years, Matisse has grown East Fork into a successful business, alongside his business partner, John Vigeland, and his wife, Connie. East Fork’s product line grew from a line of humble mugs and bowls in earthy colours like ‘panna cotta’ and ‘morel’ to a fully-fledged homeware line that encompasses kitchen essentials, candles and even glassware. The company also grew; today East Fork has more than 100 employees in its Asheville, North Carolina headquarters.

Finally, Matisse was ready to re-embrace his famous forebear. Today, East Fork has unveiled the Matisse Collection, a joyful assortment of tabletop essentials featuring the French artist’s most iconic works.

There are plates emblazoned with whimsical faces–based on Mattisse prints such as ‘Bédouine au grand voile (1947),’ and ‘Nadia au regard sérieux (1948)’. There’s a delicate line-drawing of a plane tree—’Le Platane (1951)’—printed on a round serving platter. And then there's a set of dinner plates printed with the artist’s most recognizable cutouts, a series of reclining figures titled ‘Nu Bleu’ (1952). The company has even launched a new brilliant azure colourway, La Sirène, to complement the decorative items.

‘With time, it feels like a natural progression to honor my great-grandfather’s legacy in this special way,’ Matisse explains.

The ceramist was also working with a deadline: Henri Mattisse’s oeuvre entered the public domain in the U.S. this year. For the collection, the younger Matisse was able to collaborate with his family’s estate and foundation, Héritiers Matisse, to ensure that the East Fork line was as faithful to the artist’s originals as possible.

‘Now that [East Fork’s] stood firmly on its own for many years has the weight of that legacy lightened enough to celebrate and honor it. This collection is the beautiful culmination of that process,’ Matisse says.