Posts Tagged ‘INFLUENCES’

LAVISH, HIGHLY ORIGINAL furniture created by designers working in Spain and Italy represented the most exotic form of Art Nouveau.
Italy called the style Stile Liberty, after the London shop at the forefront of the movement, or Stile Floreale, due to the nature-inspired decoration that characterized the movement. Italy had a rich tradition of decoration based on nature, from Roman mosaics to the grandiose style of Baroque (see pp.40-41). The new style – on show at the 1902 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative Arts at Turin – was taken up by artisans such as Ernesto Basile, a master of Stile Floreale; the prolific designer and cabinet-maker, Carlo Zen; and Eugenio Quarto. Quarto’s exquisitely carved pieces were praised for appealing to Italian tastes and modern living needs, rather than replicating northern European Art Nouveau designs.
CARLO BUGATTI
However, it was Carlo Bugatti who held pride of place as a designer of extraordinary originality. Bugatti established workshops in Milan in 1888, where he created an eclectic interpretation of Art Nouveau, based upon flowers, animals, and plants, Egyptian, Byzantine, and Moorish influences, Japanese art, and fantasy.
The handcrafted furniture produced in Bugatti’s workshop – desks,
cabinets, chairs. and settees – was not well constructed but had a rustic, imaginative charm. The furniture often combined useful features, such as tables with built-in cabinets. and chairs that incorporated lamps. Pieces used a wide range of sumptuous materials including silk, leather, and vellum for upholstering chairs and covering boxes and tabletops, and ebony, bone, mother-of-pearl, and metals, which were used as inlays.
The range of Bugatti’s influences can be seen in his use of soft, warm colours, textiles, and strips of beaten or pierced metal evocative of North Africa, and the distinctive shield
backs, crescent legs, and pinnacle and minaret-shapes inspired by Istamic motifs. Bugatti caused a sensation with the furniture he designed for particular settings, such as the prize-winning Moorish interior he created for the Italian Pavilion at the 1902 Turin International Exhibition of Modern Decorative Arts.
While Bugattis early furniture was robust, with lively, complex patterns, he later developed a more restrained style that depended on a palette of pale colours and serpentine curves, influenced by the Parisian Art
Nouveau designers.
SPAIN AND GAUDI
A band of Catalan architects, led by Antom Gaudi in Barcelona, brought the Art Nouveau style to Spain. A daringly original designer, Gaudi created idiosyncratic furniture that embraced nature with its sinuous shapes and lavish use of decorative flower and plant motifs. Gaudi’s furniture featured several practical elements, such as cupboards that incorporated small tables. He often worked in oak, and much of his furniture was created for his
sculptural buildings, such as Casa Milo and the Guell Palace. Other Spanish champions of Art Nouveau included cabinet-makers Gaspar Homar and Juan Busquet, who were known for their fantastic furniture.
Parlour, designed by Agostino Lauro True to the concept that the room should be designed as a unified whole, all the elements of this parlour follow the same sinuous styling. The built-in bookcases are an integral part of the wall design
and the furniture echoes the curves of the panelling.

ITALIAN CHAIR
This Italian side chair was designed by Giacomo Cometti and is made of carved oak. The sinuous carving on the back of the chair confined to the splat, and the basic shape of the chair is uncluttered by ornate decoration. The upholstery is attached to the seat with small brass studs. c.1902.
SPANISH CABINET
This corner cabinet is made of oak. It has a round top with two curved glazed doors at the front. The doors are divided into six panels of glass by sinuous wooden partitions. The interior of the cabinet has two shelves and the piece stands on three legs. 1904-05.
ITALIAN SIDEBOARD
The upper section consists of a central cupboard and drawers flanked by open storage. The lower section contains a marble-topped cupboard. Cometti was an artist-turned craftsman who originally trained as a sculptor. He was heavily influenced by the English Arts and Crafts
Movement. c.1902.

NUT WOOD ARMCHAIRS
This pair of dark stained armchairs was designed by Carlo Bugatti. Each chair is decorated with inlaid pewter and embossed copper banding. The seat and back are upholstered in natural leather and further embellished with woollen tassels. c.1900.
ITALIAN INLAID SIDEBOARD
Made by Carlo Bugatti, this sideboard shows Japanese, Moorish, and Egyptian influences. The doors are covered with vellum, and the upper door is hinged and drops down to reveal shelving and small drawers. The whole piece is contained within a four pillar construction; the frame is made of brown stained and
OCCASIONAL TABLE
This mahogany occasional table by Carlo Bugatti has a top inlaid with pewter and bone and circular marquetry, and sides with stylized florets and roundels. The legs feature embossed bronzed coverings. Early 20th century.
PRAYER BENCH
This prayer bench, designed by Antoni Gaudi, has a curved back, with flat armrests and a slightly bowed seat. The bench is supported on slender and elegant curving legs, which are linked by stretchers. Early 20th century.

Antiques: Furniture, Porcelain, Silver, Clocks Recently Featured at Antcollectors (6)

EARLY 19TH CENTURY
EUROPEAN INFLUENCES
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN American, British, and French furniture in the early 19th century is complex and there is often no easy way to distinguish the origins of pieces. Although the United States was stylistically dependent on the Old World, it still produced some highly original makers, who adapted the Regency and Empire styles in much the same way as European countries diluted the French Napoleonic style. However, it is Sometimes only possible to confirm that a piece is American by analyzing the construction timbers.
The American interpretation of styles is best seen in the work of Duncan Phyfe and Charles-Honore Lannuier. Phyfe’s Scottish origin probably encouraged him to adopt Thomas Sheraton’s style initially.
Phyfe usually worked in Santo Domingo mahogany, palisander, or purpleheart. He went on to produce pieces in the Empire style before developing the Fat Classical style, which favoured sculptural decoration.
Charles-Honore Lannuier was French and settled in New York in 1803. Having trained in France, he brought with him the Louis XVI style, which evolved into an idiosyncratic form of Empire. His furniture is often difficult to distinguish from the French prototypes, especially as he used costly materials and probably imported gilt-bronze mounts from Paris.
Pattern books produced in Britain and France by Sheraton, Percier, and others disseminated European style to the United States more quickly than in the past, so trends were less delayed.

DIRECTOIRE BERGUE
This French armchair exemplifies the berg&e design. It has a high, curved back with a top rail sweeping forwards to form the armrests, which are padded to provide support for the elbows. The chair has a fully upholstered seat
and back, downswept arm supports, and a gently shaped seat rail. The upholstery fabric is not original. The frame of the berg6re is carved with leaves throughout and is raised on short, tapering, fluted legs to the front and splayed legs to the rear. The front legs are decorated with carved rosettes. c.1800.

AMERICAN TUB CHAIR
Like the curricula chair (left), this Federal mahogany armchair shares characteristics with the bergere: the upholstered seat, back, and arms, and the continuous line of the rounded back and arms. Early 19th century.

ENGLISH PEDESTAL SIDEBOARD
This mahogany sideboard has a raised shell and acanthus-carved, shaped back over four frieze drawers. The breakfront pedestals are carved with lion’s-paw feet and open on to shelves. They stand on plinth bases. c.1820.
AMERICAN PEDESTAL SIDEBOARD
This Classical mahogany sideboard mirrors the English version (above) having a leaf-carved, shaped backboard and pedestals on a plinth base. The rectangular top is stepped and sits above an ogee-moulded frieze fitted with drawers. c.1840.

This mahogany, boxwood, and ebony-strung card table has a rectangular, crossbanded, folding top above a plain frieze and ring-turned, tapering legs with brass casters. Early 19th century.
GEORGE IV CARD TABLE
ENGLISH CENTRE TABLE
AMERICAN CENTRE TABLE
AMERICAN CARD TABLE
Made of mahogany and bird’s-eye maple, this card table has rosewood crossbanding and a hinged top above a serpentine frieze. The ring-turned, fluted legs end in turned feet. Early 19th century.
This rosewood table has a circular tilt-top with a plain, crossbanded frieze. It has an octagonal spreading pedestal and a concave triform base with scrolling paw feet. Early 19th century.
This Empire table has a circular rope-carved top with a plain frieze and a floral carved and gilded pedestal. The base and feet are almost identical to the English example, left.

AMERICAN SECRETAIRE
This Classical-style secretaire a abattant has a marble top and a frieze drawer flanked by figural mounts. The drop front sits above cupboard doors. Early 19th century.
FRENCH SECRETAIRE A ABATTANT
This Empire-style, mahogany tall chest has three drawers above a pair of cupboard doors. The case is flanked by tapered pilasters topped by gilt-metal female busts. Early 19th century

AMERICAN SOFA
This elegant American sofa has a similar shaped and carved top rail and outscrolled arms to the Regency sofa (see left). The back, arms, and seat are upholstered and raised on a leaf-carved seat rail. The sofa is supported
on elaborately carved legs that terminate in paw feet. Compared to the Regency example, this sofa is proportionally more bulky.
ENGLISH CELLARET
The rectangular hinged top of this mahogany cellaret encloses a divided interior. It is supported on a rope-turned plinth and raised on ring-turned brass caps with casters. Early 19th century.

AMERICAN CELLARET
This inlaid cherry-wood cellaret, on a stand, has a hinged lid and compartmentalized interior. The cellaret stands on square-section, tapering legs. Early 19th century.
REGENCY SOFA
This mahogany Regency-style sofa has a framed scrolling back and outscrolled arms with reeded, mahogany fronts. The squab cushion and bolsters are supported on a reeded seat rail with bead-and-reel moulded tablets.
The sofa is supported on splayed, reeded legs with leaf-cast brass caps and casters. The splayed legs are particularly susceptible to damage. Early 19th century.