The History of French Furniture.
Without doubt, during the
eighteenth century, the French designed and built some of the most
beautiful and refined furniture ever made, displaying the highest level
of artistic and technical ability. Much admired by an international
clientele, it was and still is used to furnish residences initially all
over Europe and now the World.
The
craftsmen of France were far more advanced than the English, therefore
the English craftsmen took their furniture design inspiration from them.
French Period furniture follows the French Furniture Style dates as follows:
1610 - 1643 Louis 13th
1643 - 1715 Louis 14th
1715 - 1774 Louis 15th
1774 - 1793 Louis 16th
1795 - 1804 Directoire and Consulate
1804 - 1815 Empire
The major influences of French Furniture came within 1643 to 1793, the reigns of Louis 14th, 15th and 16th
Louis 14th (1642 - 1715)
The
French Renaissance had lost most of it's Italian origin and had
developed a character of it's own. This is when Louis 14th came to
reign; he was a man with extravagant tastes. France was at the time one
of the wealthiest countries in Europe therefore he was able to indulge
in his passion for arts and crafts. The country had fine skilled
craftsmen of enormous talent in abundance and nothing was too good or
too expensive to be made. The most outstanding of these craftsmen was
Andre Charles Boulle, he experimented with the Italian art form of
Marquetry in brass, copper, tortiseshell and ebony. This work is now
commonly called "Boulle work".
The features of the French style furniture
were, wood carving, which did not have decoration, only marquetry, and
often elaborate brass mounts. The surfaces of cabinets were generally
flat. This is a considerable feature as the next period used curved
surfaces everywhere. The main source of decoration was Boulle work.
Curved and straight legs were used, with the curved dominating at the
end moving to the more shapely next period.
The
Palace of Versailles was commissioned by Louis 14th, it was furnished
with the finest and richest French furniture that could possibly be
produced. Much was destroyed during the Revolution, but what remains
today is still extravagant splendour. In major contrast, England at the
time was producing simple walnut furniture. On Charles II return from
years of exile in France, he introduced many of the French ideas and
designs to England.
Louis 15th (1715 - 1774)
The
son of Louis 14th was only five years old when his father died and too
young to take the reign. The Duke on Orleans was appointed Regent and
took control until his death in 1723.
Changes happened in this time
and the extravagant grandeur of the court was no longer. The country was
not as wealthy and people lived a much quieter presence.
Changes in
social standings were occurring, the aristocracy began to marry the more
humble but now wealthy middle classes, bankers, merchants etc. The
grand mansions that once were ostentatious and full of extravagance were
replaced by smaller more intimate homes.
This
meant that the style of French furniture had to change to meet the
peoples new demands. It needed to be smaller, it stayed ornate but the
once masculine forms were replaced by softer prettier feminine lines.
Therefore the French furniture became more elegant with more ornamental decoration.
The
major feature of Louis 15th French Furniture is the shaped work of the
curves. This commenced in Louis 14th 's reign and was expanded upon to
the extent that there was barely a straight line or, flat surface
visible.
Fronts and sides of cabinets were curved in plan and
elevation, which required a high level of skill for the craftsmen to
apply the veneers, then there was the elaborate decoration that was
usually inlaid. Guilded mounts in place of carving continued its trend.
The
cabriole leg (French Version) was at it's most popular during this
period. It was similar to the English, their's had a high-pronounced
knee adjoining a square at the top and the bottom usually was completed
with a club or claw and ball foot.
This Style of Chateau Furniture had
a more flowing shape, it did not have the square at the top, the shape
flowed into the rails or had a concave curve upwards and the foot was
usually scrolled.
The most common of timbers used at this time were,
boxwood, rosewood, mahogany, walnut, tulipwood, sycamore and ebony.
Guilding and lacquering were also popular at this time.
There was a
reaction to the elaborate Rococo work near the end of Louis 15th's reign
and the revival of the classical spirit began in Louis 16th's reign.
Louis 16th (1774-1793)
The
reaction against the work of the 18th century as well as the continued
financial difficulties of his predecessor created a new style of French furniture.
The
design became more refined, most of the shape work was removed and with
the Queen's influence, (Marie Antoinette), who preferred the simpler
forms a new style was developed.
In comparison to the English styles
of the same period it was still very ornate, but compared with what had
been previously in fashion it was very much simplified.
The major
characteristics of this period's French furniture are the use of
straight lines and flat surfaces with delicate, refined use of detail.
Guilded mounts were still popular, small mouldings and light carvings
were now seen.
The
timbers used were the same as for the previous period adding satinwood
to the list. Now that the shaped work had gone, the cabriole leg was no
longer as popular; it was used in a lighter form for small beaureaux and
console tables.
Light turned legs or square tapered legs which often had recessed surfaces and guilded mount decoration were then introduced.
French Decor Furniture Styles; Renaissance 2,
Louis xiii, Louis xiv,
xvth century, 10th - 20 century, regency, Louis xv,
Shabby Chic, Louis
xvi, empire, restoration, Louis Philippe, napoleon iii, art nouveau, art
deco, Antoinette,
rustic,
chateau,
bistro,
provincial, Régence, Paris,
Versailles.
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