Louis XVI furniture

also: Style Louis XVI

style c. 1760-1792 France

The neoclassical turn that reshaped French furniture began around 1760, driven by the excavations at Herculaneum and Pompeii and by Greek and Roman designs circulating in engravings. The Louis XVI style answered the excesses of the rocaille with rectilinear calm: straight, tapered legs carved like classical columns, fluting, laurel garlands and repeating classical borders, symmetry in place of asymmetry. Cabinetmakers such as Jean-Henri Riesener, Martin Carlin and Adam Weisweiler produced refined desks, secrétaires and small tables veneered with fine marquetry, inlaid with Japanese lacquer panels or mounted with plaques of Sèvres porcelain and gilt bronze. Floral upholstery in Marie Antoinette's taste softened the severity. The Revolution ended the style as a royal industry: the furnishings of Versailles were auctioned off in 1793-94 and scattered across Europe.

French, Paris and Sèvres; Desk; Woodwork-Furniture
French, Paris and Sèvres; Desk; Woodwork-FurnitureCC0 (credit: Martin Carlin / Manufacture nationale de Sèvres) · source

Defining characteristics

  • Straight, tapered legs carved and fluted like classical columns
  • Symmetry and rectilinear structure replacing Rococo curves
  • Greek and Roman motifs: garlands, fluting and tapered column forms
  • Sèvres porcelain plaques and gilt-bronze mounts applied with jeweler-like restraint
  • Fine floral and geometric marquetry in exotic woods - bois de rose, bois de violette, mahogany
  • Medallion, lyre and hat-shaped chair backs with floral upholstery

Key figures

  • Jean-Henri Riesener (1734-1806) — German-born Parisian ébéniste whose work exemplifies the early neoclassical Louis XVI style
  • Martin Carlin (c. 1730-1785) — Cabinetmaker renowned for graceful furniture mounted with Sèvres porcelain, sold to Marie Antoinette
  • Adam Weisweiler (c. 1750 - after 1810) — Master of small refined pieces combining Japanese lacquer, Sèvres plaques and gilt bronze

Example works

  • Armchair à la Reine for the apartments of Marie-Antoinette, Versailles — Georges Jacob (1781)
  • Chaise voyeuse (card-playing chair), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston — Jean-Baptiste-Claude Sené (1787)
  • Oval table, Metropolitan Museum — David Roentgen (1774-1780)

Sources

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