Of the 40 ceramics factories that lined the banks of the Canal du Centre at the beginning of the 20th century, the Vairet-Baudot brickworks (briquetterie), near Ciry-le-Noble, is the best preserved. Bought in 1995 by the Creusot-Montceau eco-museum, it has now been renovated.
Every year it welcomes artists in residence who have projects that involve working with clay.
Tourists can also visit the factory to discover how bricks and tiles are made, and to find out about the skills and lives of the hundreds of workers once employed by the factory.
The display of the artists’ works creates a dialogue between the industrial use of clay and artistic creation in this place of preservation and heritage.
This year, Fabrice Hyber has completed a project called “Fée Maison”, a two-square metre house produced from a single block of clay that required a purpose-built kiln and a whole month to fire! During the visit, my attention was attracted by a small steam locomotive with variable gauge wheels.
It was ordered by the German army in 1943 for use in the USSR (where the tracks had a wider gauge) and, having been blocked at the border, was bought at auction by the Vairet-Baudot brickworks to haul its bricks to Ciry-le-Noble.

La Briqueterie (see slideshow) www.lacommunaute.fr