Nicolas’s passion for ceramics started a long time ago. He was always especially fascinated by the porcelains exported from China to Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. It might partly results from his childhood spent in Nantes, the city of the famous collectors François and Nicole Hervouët. Three centuries ago, that city was a key harbor for the commercial relations between Asia and Europe.

He graduated from the Ecole du Louvre, his major beeing French Decoratives Arts from Renaissance to the 19th century. There, Nicolas studied ceramics with Antoinette Faÿ-Hallé, the highly known Chief Curator of the Sèvres Ceramic Museum.

He graduated a law degree at the Sorbonne and then started a Master in Arts History at Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes. As a subject for his graduation Mémoire, he chose Léopold Gély, a sculptor on pâte-sur-pâte at the Sèvres Manufactory during the second half of the 19th century. In 2015, he pursued his research on the pâte-sur-pâte at Sèvres the topic of his PhD prepared under the leadership of Jean-François Belhoste.

During his studies, Nicolas did several internships at Christie’s, first in the European Ceramics and Glass Department. He then worked on important sales such as the Comte and comtesse de Paris sale in 2008 and the Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé sale in 2009.

From 2009 to 2016, Nicolas has been working extensively for the Galerie Christophe Perlès, contributing in particular to its annual catalog with researches on European porcelain and faïence.

In 2012, Michèle Bimbenet-Privat and Frédéric Dassas, both Chief Curators at the Art Decoratives Department at the Musée du Louvre, offered Nicolas to catalogue and research all the 17th and 18th century European faïence in the new Louvre catalogue.

Following his passion, Nicolas decided then to start an art dealer career. After a few years he has chosen to open his first online business devoted to Chinese Export Porcelain. This gallery on line is the best way to provide everyone with a perfect access to items of great quality, similar to the ones which can be found in famous collections and which are published in reference books. In addition to advising private collectors of Chinese Export Porcelain, Nicolas has made severals sales to world’s museums.

Since 2022, the Galerie Nicolas Fournery Gallery has been part of the Printemps Asiatique, an event dedicated to Asian Art which takes place in June in Paris, and exhibits a selection of Chinese porcelain at the Pagoda CT Loo located in the 8th arrondissement.

Nicolas Fournery is a Société des Amis du Musée du Louvre member and a Société des Amis du Musée de la Ceramique member.

Crédits Photo : Julio Piatti

• Fournery, N. (sous la direction de Durand, J., Bimbenet-Privat, M., Dassas, F.), Décors, mobilier et objets d’art au Musée du Louvre : de Louis XIV à Marie-Antoinette, Paris, Louvre Editions – Somogy, 2014.
• Fournery, N., Le renouveau des décors mythologiques et historiques sur la céramique de la Renaissance au XVIIIe siècle, in, Faire bonne figure – Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°17, Paris, mai 2016, pp. 180-183.
• Fournery, N., Assiette à marly d’or en porcelaine de Sèvres, in, Le Bestiaire – Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°16, Paris, mai 2015, pp. 122-123.
• Fournery, N., Le décor le plus précieux de la faïence rouennaise : les ocres niellés, in, La faïence de Rouen 1700-1750 – Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°15, Paris, mai 2014, pp. 138-141.
• Fournery, N., Plat l’Enlèvement d’Europe en faïence de Nevers, dans Dorigny, M., -Maurice-Chabard, B. (dir.), De Goya à Delacroix : Les relations artistiques de la famille Guillemardet, [exposition, Autun, musée Rolin, 21 juin – 21 septembre 2014], Autun, Musée Rolin, 2014.
• Fournery, N., Assiette à figures chinoises du service de Madame du Barry, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°14, Paris, mai 2013, pp. 122-125.
• Fournery, N., Rare écuelle à bouillon couverte en porcelaine de Sèvres à fond pourpre, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°13, Paris, mai 2012, pp. 152-155.
• Fournery, N., Minerve sous les traits de Marie-Antoinette, biscuit de porcelaine de Sèvres, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°12, Paris, mai 2011, pp. 108-115.
• Fournery, N. Rendre à Versailles … , Point de Vue IDM, septembre 2011, pp. 42-48.
• Fournery, N., Henri IV chevauchant en Neptune, Suite de Palissy, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°12, Paris, mai 2011, pp. 12-19.
• Fournery, N., Le mobilier de port à Nantes au XVIIIe siècle, Groupe Nouvel Ouest, Nantes privilège, septembre 2010, p. 34.
• Fournery, N. Les Animaux de Monsieur Oudry en porcelaine de Vincennes, L’estampille-l’objet d’art, mai 2010, n°458, p. 32-37.
• Fournery, N., Les animaux de Monsieur Oudry en porcelaine tendre émaillée de Vincennes, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°11, Paris, mai 2010, pp. 44-45.
• Fournery, N., Le groupe le jaloux en porcelaine de Zurich, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°11, Paris, mai 2010, pp. 154-155.
• Fournery, N., Plaque en faïence de Moustiers représentant la guérison du paralytique, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°11, Paris, mai 2010, pp. 106-115.
• Fournery, N., Bassin dit de la Tempérance de l’Ecole de Bernard Palissy, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°11, Paris, mai 2010, pp. 16-19.
• Fournery, N., Des vases en or, Point de Vue IDM, septembre 2009, p. 65.
• Fournery, N., Paire de tasses en porcelaine dure provenant du service à dessert de l’Impératrice Joséphine et du prince Eugène, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°10, Paris, mai 2009, pp. 144-149.
• Fournery, N., Statuette inédite de Napoléon Ier en biscuit de Naples, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°10, Paris, mai 2009, pp. 130-135.
• Fournery, N., Le service de Louis XV à fond bleu céleste, in, Galerie Christophe Perlès – catalogue n°10, Paris, mai 2009, pp. 80-85.
• Fournery, N., Les hôtels particuliers du Boulevard Guist’hau à Nantes, Groupe Nouvel Ouest, septembre 2005, Nantes, p. 44-56.