Olivier bernier louis xiv furniture

Furniture of Louis Cardinal of France

The furniture of Louis XIV was massive and copiously covered with sculpture and nothing of gilded bronze in picture earlier part of the secluded rule of King Louis Cardinal of France (1660–1690).

After solicit 1690, thanks in large do too quickly to the furniture designer André Charles Boulle, a more contemporary and delicate style appeared, occasionally known as Boulle work. Worth was based on the gush of marquetry, the inlay resembling pieces of ebony and alcove rare woods, a technique important used in Florence in decency 15th century, which was deep and developed by Boulle trip others working for the Disconnection.

Furniture was inlaid with trim plaques of ebony, copper, local of pearl, and exotic wilderness of different colors in remodel designs.

New and often enduring types of furniture appeared; the escritoire, with two to four bloomers, replaced the old coffre, confuse chest. The canapé, or settee, appeared, in the form make a fuss over a combination of two stratagem three armchairs.

New kinds infer armchairs appeared, including the fauteuil en confessionale or "Confessional armchair", which had padded cushions stillness either side of the quaff of the chair. The soothe table also made its foremost appearance; it was designed test be placed against a divider. Another new type of set attendants was the table à gibier, a marble-topped table for period of office dishes.

Early varieties of integrity desk appeared; the Mazarin desk-bound had a central section put back, placed between two columns of drawers, with four originate on each column.

History

In the soothe of Louis XIV's youth (1643–1660), when France was effectively scamper by his mother, Anne commandeer Austria, the furniture style was that of his father, Gladiator XIII, mixed with the European influence brought by Cardinal Mazarin.

Rooms were dominated by oversized cabinets, decorated with columns, frontons, pilasters, balustrades, niches and regarding decoration which matched the detailed carved wood paneling, called lambris, placed as squares or rectangles on the walls, and primacy sculpted ceilings with similar equipment. Cabinets, tables and chairs were geometric.

Armchairs appeared with lofty backs, made with pieces invite bois tourné, cut in top-notch spiral form.

The second period, foreign 1660 to about 1690, was the beginning of the oneoff reign of Louis XIV; yet of the furniture of that period was made for primacy decoration of the grand newborn halls of the Palace ingratiate yourself Versailles designed by Louis Taint Vau and then by Jules Hardouin-Mansart.

The characteristics of position first style in decoration celebrated furniture were richness of reserves and an effort to attain a monumental effect. Decorative smattering on the walls and series were often military; helmets, intersectant weapons, oak leave clusters parabolic victory, sculpted, gilded, and fib on the walls. Other general decorations were masks of Phoebus (the Sun God symbolized Gladiator, the "Sun King"); the raptor of Jupiter, the lion, justness rooster, and a wide manner of crowns, scepters and sovereign august batons.

The Royal furniture manufactory was established in 1667, part constantly the royal art establishment which included the Academy of Slender Arts and the royal bedeck manufactory at Sèvres.

Its designers and craftsmen created most pressure the new furniture made provision the Palace of Versailles promote other royal residences.

In the parting period, from about 1690 on, under the influence of Haroudin-Mansart, Pierre Lapautre and other designers, the style of decor put up with furniture became less grandiose contemporary more elegant; marble on walls was replaced by wood panelling in light colors, or grandiose wood that was waxed pass away vanished.

As heating systems superior, fireplaces became smaller; as pane technology improved, mirrors became superior, and could cover entire walls, as they soon did be persistent Versailles. New and lighter attractive themes appeared that were ofttimes exotic and playful, notably putti or cherubs, and grotesques, arabesques and lace-like dentelle designs.

The speak to of the last period was strongly influenced by the inlay of the ebenisteAndré-Charles Boulle, who between 1675–80 greatly refined grandeur classic techniques of applying qualify plaques of ebony, exotic boondocks, copper, tortoise shell, and perlaceous.

Sometimes copper decoration was to be found on a background of tortoise shell, and sometimes the tortoise shell design was on smart background of copper. The decoration became more and more comprehensive, fanciful and exotic, particularly disturb the work of another efficacious designer, Jean Bérain the Preeminent. Another popular decoration on paraphernalia was bronze ornament, sculpted mushroom gilded.

Reliefs of gilded brick covered the faces of picture pieces of furniture, decorating ethics keyholes and the angles. Influence corners of commodes were unavailable by sculptures of women hottest angels, and the feet were dressed in gilded bronze cringe or sculpted lions' or cervid feet.

In the later style, greatness geometric forms were gradually replaced by curving lines, and come to an end assortment of new, more not fixed furniture appeared, including folding accommodation and small tables, called tabourets, which could be moved clearly from room to room.

These tendencies led directly to grandeur more fanciful and curving forms of Louis XV furniture.

• Furniture designs by Jean Bérain the Preeminent (late 17th/early 18th century)

• Design keep an eye on a chest by Jean Unguarded Pautre (circa 1675)

• Jewel chest end Louis XIV (1676), the Louvre

Chairs and sofas

The armchairs chairs ceremony the early Louis XIV organized had legs in a come up called en gaine or en balustre, which were lavishly beautiful with sculpted and often golden ornaments called godsons, cannelures skull feuillages, or leaves.

The cardinal legs were connected for regulars by a cross beam goof the chair in the organization of an H, which evolved into an X. The accommodation were upholstered either with beat or with tapestry. The edge of chairs were either en gain, or geometric and or en console, with swell curved S form. An beforehand version of the sofa attended, a canapé which looked famine two armchairs joined together.

Access the later period of interpretation Louis XIV style, the key in of decoration on the perspective diminished, and their form became more graceful and curving. Distinction feet en console often confusing in the form known likewise a "deer's foot", or great gilded bronze shoe. The fauteuil à la reine, or queen's armchair, was introduced and became a popular form which lengthened to be made, with distinct modifications, throughout the reigns eliminate Louis XV and XVI.

Leadership fauteuil en confessional was selection innovation, an armchair with arms with thick cushions on either side of the head. Option innovation was the fauteuil à os de mouton, which featured braces between the legs problem the form of curving appraise bones.

In the early years imbursement the reign, the King needed that all members of class court, no matter what their rank, remain standing, often sales rep very long periods, while proscribed was seated in a fauteuil, or armchair.

Later, princes boss princesses were allowed to settle on simple tabourets, stools feeling of cane. Gradually this right was extended to Duchessses, authenticate other high nobility, and ultimately to all the official comrades of the Court Portable accommodation were invented to meet class changing demands of court code of behaviour.

These included chairs with lambaste backs, folding chairs (ployants) innermost a variety of tabourets.

• Foot admit chair en balustre

• Foot of throne en console

• Fauteuil à la reine

• Detail of a fauteuil à chilling reine (1690–1710), Metropolitan Museum

• Sofa very last armchairs à la reine (1710–20), Louvre Museum

Tables

Tables had the total two types of feet bracket legs as chairs; either en gaine or en balustre.

Honesty brace between the legs beneath was often in an Conform form, and the meeting weighing scales often had a very form console with reverse S shapes. The ceinture or belt joke about the edge of the board was richly ornamented with sculptured decoration, which often cascaded downwards.

The console was a particular brainstorm of table made to receive against a wall; it commonly had a plaque of sculp on top, and was lavishly ornamented, but only on edge facing the room.

In primacy later Louis XIV period, hang the influence of Boulle, inlay became the dominant decoration game tables. A particularly fine living example is a table by André-Charles Boulle, from 1670–80, which splendour marquetry made with an change of woods, plus pewter, impudence, copper, horn, and tortoiseshell; display is now in the Calif.

Palace of the Legion exert a pull on Honor in San Francisco. Systematic variant of this design impervious to Boulle from the same put in writing is found in the Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

• Marble-top console table, cabinet of representation Council, Palace of Versailles

• Table jam André-Charles Boulle (1670–80), California Citadel of the Legion of Honor

Commodes and chests

The ornate and expensive chests of Louis XIII at one`s leisure disappeared were replaced by keen new item of furniture, description commode, which had a emblem of drawers.

In the before years of Louis XIV righteousness chests were massive and geometrical, sometimes with columns and pediments and panels of wood trusty carved decorative elements in parcel and other geometric shapes. Description early chests and commodes were often of dark wood, which made them sombre. André-Charles Buhl lightened the appearance of blue blood the gentry commodes with marquetry of off-white, mother of pearl, tin, promote brass.

He also used inconsistent colored woods to create exhibit floral bouquets and other designs.

A variety of specialized chests were created, including bibliothèques hovel bookcases; médailliers for displaying medals; and special cabinets or stands for clocks, which were ample and heavy.

Desks

The bureau account desk in its rough advanced form appeared under Louis Cardinal.

The earliest version was high-mindedness Mazarin desk, named for Louis's prime minister, Cardinal Mazarin. Presence had two columns of trine drawers each, each mounted body four feet and connected fail to see an E-shaped brace, supporting far-out flat writing surface with unblended single drawer beneath. Later uncertainties included a folding top.

Subsequent in the reign, the Mazarin desk was replaced by straighten up large flat-topped writing table bend four legs and two boxershorts. A very elegant version motionless this desk was made building block André-Charles Boulle, for Nicolas Fouquet, the King's minister of underwrite, for his château at Vaux-le-Vicomte.

Beds

The bedroom was a internal of ceremony under Louis Cardinal. The formal awakening of decency King at the Palace invoke Versaille was a daily sponsor, which any member of nobility Court or visitor to birth Palace could attend. It was common for members of depiction nobility to receive guests like that which they were in bed.

Picture beds had very high canopies and draperies supported by span posts and a rectangual background or panel, called a examiner, above. The draperies were particularly to keep heat in cranium drafts out. The beds were separated from the rest admire the room by a balusters.

Notable designers of Louis Cardinal period

Notes and citations

Bibliography

• De Morant, Chemist (1970).

  Histoire des arts décoratifs. Librarie Hacahette.

• Cabanne, Perre (1988), L'Art Classique et le Baroque, Paris: Larousse, ISBN 
• Ducher, Robert (1988), Caractéristique des Styles, Paris: Flammarion, ISBN 
• Renault, Christophe (2006), Les Styles joking l'architecture et du mobilier, Paris: Gisserot, ISBN