Ceramics have been made in Vallauris, a village in southern France, since Roman times. The place has remained famous for its potteries in the centuries since.
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Picasso first visited Vallauris in 1946, during the annual ceramics exhibition. Despite its important history, the village had fallen somewhat into oblivion.
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However, this visit by Picasso promised to shake up the daily life of the village and its inhabitants, considering Picasso was already a major celebrity during his lifetime.
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One of the exhibitors at the exhibition was atelier Madoura, managed by Georges and Suzanne Ramie.
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While visiting this studio, Picasso created two small objects, one bull and the head of a faun.

Vallauris, circa 1900 (Timlin, 2024)

Picasso and Suzanne Ramié (Duncan, 1957)

However, it was not until the following year that Picasso returned to Vallauris again, this time with a folder full of drawings of ideas. His illustrations were sketches that he wanted to bring to life through ceramics.
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At Madoura, Picasso found a welcoming environment: Georges and Suzanne cordially offered him a place to work. Here Picasso learned to work through molds, which allowed him to create multiple copies of unique ceramics.
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These editions were hand-painted and ranged from 50 to even 500 pieces. These huge editions made Picasso's work accessible to a larger and wider audience.