Parisian ceramics brand ASTIER de VILATTE has launched a collaboration with Countess Setsuko Klossowska de Rola, wife of painter Balthus and currently an active artist. Astier de Villatte founder Benoit met Setsuko, the wife of Balthus's director, when his parents were studying at the Medici Palace in Rome as exchange students at the Académie de France. The collaboration was realized after they reunited in 2013. At a press conference held at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Shinjuku, Tokyo in February, Setsuko said, "Until now, I've mostly been involved with books and paintings, so I was drawn to ceramics, which I'm working on for the first time. Having been exposed to Balthus since childhood, Benoit and I share a common aesthetic sensibility." Benoit also commented, "The collaboration was a natural progression. We both brought many ideas to the table."

The first product to be released is "COLLECTION SETSUKO," a collection of ceramic pieces created by his wife Setsuko at the Astier de Villatte atelier in Paris. The lineup includes 25 items, including a pitcher with a braided handle (35,000 yen), a cat incense holder (23,000 yen), an acorn leaf plate (19,000 yen), and a box decorated with roses (14,000 yen). Also on display will be the "Grand Chalet Collection" (starting at 11,000 yen), which features plates based on the ornaments carved into the exterior walls of the Grand Chalet, the largest wooden building in Switzerland and where Setsuko still lives, and the "Grand Chalet" candle (8,500 yen), which recreates the scent of linden, a tree Balthus loved to wear. The Setsuko Collection and Grand Chalet Collection will be on sale from the 19th at the Astier de Villatte flagship store and H.P. DECO in Jingumae, Tokyo. H.P. DECO will be holding the "Astier de Villatte and Setsuko Klossowska de Rola" exhibition from April 19th to May 19th. A Balthus exhibition will also begin on the same day at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum in Ueno.