Ref.18720
Matthew (1815-1889) and Willem (1816-1881) HORRIX (attrib. to) Important dining room set in "Black Forest" style

This dining room set set was made in the second half of the 19th century. It is very likely that it was designed by the Horrix workshops, of the brothers Matthew and Willem HORRIX. Here the rustic style, also called in the 19th « Black Forest », expressed itself at its fully. All the various elements that are composing this dining room set were made of beech wood richly carved imitating nature, with a nice brown patina. Thus, those furniture seems to be made of twigs, roots, vines, flowers and fruits. Amusing details sprang out of the carving, such as snails, grasshoppers, beetles.… and different elements are in the form of plants, for instance the buffets' handles are mushrooms' shaped. The Dining Room set is composed of: - 2 SIDEBOARDS opening with two doors and two drawers. Topped with mercury mirrors (oxidized). Dim.: H. 78''3/4 x L. 53''9/16 x D. 24''3/16 cm. - 1 SERVER, trapezoidal, with Blue Turquin marble topped by a miror and a narrow shelf. It opens with two drawers and the jambs holding two shelves. Dim.: H. 59''5/8 x L. 53''1/8 x D. 20''1/2 cm. - 5 CURTAIN RODS, branch shaped and decorated with vine leaves, topped with a basket of grapes. Dim.: H. 13'' x L. 69''5/16 – 77''3/16 x D. 3''15/16 cm. - 1 round TABLE with a central quad (slightly piqued), that can be opend (extensions missing). Dim.: H.. 30''1/2 x L. 50'' x D. 52''3/8 cm. - 6 CHAIRS, all unique, each receiving a different carved decoration, with brown leather-upholstered. Dim.: H. 36''1/4 x L. 18''7/8 x D. 21''11/16 cm.

Ref.10940
BAYEUX MANUFACTURE - Four vases with polychrome and gold decoration with Chinese

These Bayeux porcelain vases feature rich decorations treated in polychrome and gold with Chinese characters, flowers and birds in medallions. The golden handles are made of bamboo branches.

Ref.12946
Pair of Sèvres porcelain vases mounted in gilt bronze and painted by J. Machereau, circa 1870

This beautiful pair of covered vases made of porcelain originally comes from the Manufacture of Sèvres where the white pieces were bought in 1869, decorated then mounted in gilt bronze by J. Machereau. He is designated as “ porcelain painter and decorator” in the Didot Bottin and has worked between 1860 and 1877, in a first time associated with Caille in the 216 Faubourg Saint-Denis, the alone from 1867, in the 22 Faubourg du Temple. The purchase archives in the Manufacture of Sèvres show that he used to buy pieces in white which he decorated next. His work and his life are unfortunately not that much studies, nevertheless, we know that he participated in the International Exhibition of 1867 in Paris in the Ceramic and porcelain area, where he received a bronze medal for tender porcelain. Then, he also participated in the one in 1878 where our pair of vases were exhibited as testifies the label inside the lid : « Machereau Paris. Exposition universelle 1878. 22 Faubourg du Temple ». During this exhibition he won a silver medal and was noticed by the Royal Society of Arts of London for « the exquisite decoration » of his vases, « nicely mounted with gilt bronzes”. The French newspaper L’Univers Illustré also spoke of his work in its publication from June, 22th 1878, for the presentation of «a very interesting shelf » made by the artiste « who knows how to mix with art the soft porcelain and the gilt bronzes ». On these oval vases the cobalt blue, typical of the Sèvres manufactory, in particular on the extremities, on the flaring foot, the neck and the lid. These parts painted in blue are adorned with a golden decoration of scrolls with leaves. The vases are put on a gilt bronze quadrangular foot. They are adorned in each angle with a square motif imitating the acanthus leaves that we also find on the feet. A laurel crown joins the vase and its foot. As four the lid, we find on its extremity, a frieze of palms and on the top a very remarkably chiseled gilt bronze pine cone. The belly also can turn allowing us to admire the two faces welcoming pastoral scenes. Indeed, on the totality of the vases belly and on the two faces, pastoral scenes are painted, typical of the mid 18th century kind, framed up and down by a white pearled border. These four scenes, in the taste of Jean-Baptiste Huet (1845-1811) or Joseph Vernet (1714-1789) take place in a rural landscape with woods, sometimes inhabited by a house in the background. The vivid colors in the first plan fade on the background to pastel tones and a blurry decor. The scenes seem to unveil themselves to the indiscretion of the spectator, framed by big trees emphasized by the precision of their details and the more vivid colors. In each scene, we see a shepherdess holding in one of her hands a stick and chaperoning her flock composed of cows, goats and sheep drinking in the middle of a river. In two scenes she is also accompanied by a man on a horse, standing in the background. The two paintings on the two faces are not separated but linked with a decoration depicting a luxurious forest with vivid colors.

Ref.11368
Gabriel Viardot (attributed to) - Japanese style presentation cabinet with a laquer and mother-of-pearl decor

This presentation furniture made of tainted sycamore made in the 19th century was certainely a work by the Japanese style furniture maker Gabriel Viardot (1830-1904). Gabriel Viardot became famous from the 1870 with his production of furniture inspired by the Asiatic ones, of which he makes his specialty. He takes his inspiration from the 1867 Worlds's Fair where Japan participates for the first time. His very characteristic furniture production was sometimes inlaid with Tonkin mother-of-pearl, but always made with tinted sycamore wood. Thus, our furniture is divided into two parts. The superior part forms a display opening by a glass door and giving access to the asymmetrical shelves. It is surmounted by a polished varnished bronze dragon that we find very often on the furniture maker's production. The lower part also shows shelves of which the mount is adorned with coiled polished varnished dragon and a lacquered door adorned with birds in a roses and hydrangeas mother-of-pearls decoration.

Ref.15804
Carved softwood high relief of an animal scene, 19th century

This softwood panel, almost certainly limewood, illustrating an animal scene is remarkable for the finesse of its ornamental details. In the foreground, a dog stands still at the edge of a pond. He has just spotted three ducks, two of which take flight to escape the hunter, who will soon rejoin his dog. The effect of perspective is particularly effective in this piece: the dog and the nearest reeds are sculpted in high relief, while the plants further away and the birds in flight are barely visible. This scene is completed by a frame that simulates wooden planks nailed together; the only reference to a human presence. An interlacing of aquatic plants, including lotuses, completes the composition, symbolising the perfect harmony between man and nature. The roughness of the planks is counterbalanced by the delicate stems and leaves that surround them. Part of the scene (the reeds, the ground, the dog's right hind leg and tail) emerges from the frame, giving the piece a particular liveliness and dynamism. Even though this beautiful sculpted panel dates back to the 19th century, it is Aubert-Henri-Joseph Parent (1753-1835) who established the reputation of this type of fine creation during the 18th century. Many artists followed in Aubert Parent's footsteps by creating panels of this kind. The Château de Versailles, for example, still has one of his high reliefs, which the sculptor gave to Louis XVI in 1777 and which was on display in the Retours de chasse dining room at Versailles.