Picasso's ceramics called attention shortly after their first appearance. Christian Zervos, Picasso's publisher and author of the catalog raisonné, wrote: ".. [Picasso's] talent and virtuosity become obvious in his ceramic works. His intentions are much more explicit than in his texts, as the verve of creativity is curbed by the necessity to adopt the eye to the shapes of this old craft." (quote after: Christian Zervos: Céramique de Picasso, in: Cahier d'Art, Paris 1948, p. 72)