Lot Essay
Louis I Cresson, maître in 1738.
These generously-proportioned and richly carved fauteuils with their rectilinear lower back are characteristic of the oeuvre of the Cresson dynasty of menuisiers, founded by Charles and Jean Cresson during the Régence and continued by both Louis I, René and Michel during the first half of the 18th century. Like his cousins, Louis I Cresson (d.1761) established his workshops in the rue de Cléry and was patronized by the duc d'Orléans as well as the prince de Condé.
The brand 'M.P.' was used in the 18th century by the Administration de Menus Plaisirs.
JACQUES DOUCET
Jacques Doucet (1851-1929) was one of the most celebrated couturiers in Paris in the early 20th century, but was equally renowned for the extraordinary collections he assembled for his Parisian hôtels in the rue de la Ville and subsequently the rue Spontini. He bought from prestigious sales such as that of the Baron Double collection of 1881 (when Doucet was just 30), acquiring masterpieces by the great ébénistes such as Riesener, Carlin and Boulle. The sale of his own collection in 1912 remains one of the landmark sales of the century for 18th century French furniture and works of art, but what is even more remarkable is that he then went on to become one of the most important early patrons of Art Deco furniture in the 1920's. Lot 164 in this sale, an ormolu-mounted marble vase, also comes from this celebrated collection.
These generously-proportioned and richly carved fauteuils with their rectilinear lower back are characteristic of the oeuvre of the Cresson dynasty of menuisiers, founded by Charles and Jean Cresson during the Régence and continued by both Louis I, René and Michel during the first half of the 18th century. Like his cousins, Louis I Cresson (d.1761) established his workshops in the rue de Cléry and was patronized by the duc d'Orléans as well as the prince de Condé.
The brand 'M.P.' was used in the 18th century by the Administration de Menus Plaisirs.
JACQUES DOUCET
Jacques Doucet (1851-1929) was one of the most celebrated couturiers in Paris in the early 20th century, but was equally renowned for the extraordinary collections he assembled for his Parisian hôtels in the rue de la Ville and subsequently the rue Spontini. He bought from prestigious sales such as that of the Baron Double collection of 1881 (when Doucet was just 30), acquiring masterpieces by the great ébénistes such as Riesener, Carlin and Boulle. The sale of his own collection in 1912 remains one of the landmark sales of the century for 18th century French furniture and works of art, but what is even more remarkable is that he then went on to become one of the most important early patrons of Art Deco furniture in the 1920's. Lot 164 in this sale, an ormolu-mounted marble vase, also comes from this celebrated collection.