Lot Essay
cf. Raymond Foulk, Centenary Exhibition: Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann, 1979, p. 16, pl. 4 for period illustration of an amaranth encoignure, which was ordered by the Mobilier National in 1922 and subsequently exhibited at Ruhlmann's Retrospective Exhibition in 1934; Frederick Brandt, Late 19th and Early 20th Century Decorative Arts, The Sydney and Frances Lewis Collection in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, pp. 160-161 for another example in rosewood, which was purchased in Paris from Palais Galliera on 24 November 1972 and subsequently exhibited in At Home in Manhattan: Modern Decorative Arts, 1925 to the Depression at Yale University in 1983; The Brooklyn Museum, Masterpieces in The Brooklyn Museum, 1988, p. 165 for example of an amaranth encoignure, which was designed for the Weitz family of Lyon, France in 1923 and acquired by the Museum in 1971 and p. 154, fig. 95 which illustrates the fabric exhibiting the same stylized floral motif; Chefs d'Oeuvre de l'Art Deco, Paris-Drouot Montaigne, November 29, 1995, lot 143 for another amaranth encoignure presently in a private collection.
Although Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann's 1916 creation of this three-legged corner cabinet defined him as the quintessential designer and craftsman of the Art Deco period, his allegiance to the use of 18th century materials, techniques and forms earned him the reputation of an ébéniste. Ruhlmann's beautiful, exotic veneers and marquetry work and his interpretation of line as decoration also catapaulted him to the forefront of the period, and his incorporation of a stylized oval floral pattern demonstrated a modern interpretation of the traditional flower and urn design.
Of the flowers that served as sources for decorative motifs, Ruhlmann and his contemporaries, such as Paul Iribe, chose to stylize the rose. The "Iribe rose" was popularized in 1910 and preceded the International Exhibition of 1911 in Turin, where flowers, specifically roses, covered the stencilled walls, burst forth from the bas-reliefs, and adorned the capitals of pilasters. Flowers spilling forth from vases and baskets were also found on André Mare's chair designs and on Iribe's carved chairs and inlaid secretaires. From 1916 through the mid-1920s, Ruhlmann elaborated upon the use of the stylized rose in his "Etat d'Angle" and "Etat Rect" cabinets, rejecting the naturalistic floral interpretations of the Art Nouveau period. This theme was taken up again in his red and gray silk damask fabric used for both upholstery and wall covering, circa 1923-24, in the salon of the Weitz' home (FIG. 1).
Ivory enjoyed a renaissance under Ruhlmann. A rare and exotic material used in previous centuries, ivory was re-interpreted by Ruhlmann to provide contrast to rich veneers, while providing a subdued and elegant form of ornamentation. The employment of the stark white ivory in the floral design accentuates the warm honey-colored amboyna ground, creating an illusionistic rendering of the marquetry roses, and the juxtapostion of the dark black ebony wood in the floral pattern against the veneered ground is striking and bold.
The encoignure stylistically and technically ranks among the great marquetry and inlaid works from the 18th century to the 20th century. Its level of craftsmanship is comparable to a Louis XVI ormulu-mounted satinwood and marquetry games table, attributed to David Roëntgen circa 1728, which sold at Christie's New York on 21 October 1997. Although the game table employs the shade marquetry technique, which too includes a depiction of roses (FIG. 2), and the encoignure incorporates a mosaic marquetry technique, both Roëntgen and Ruhlmann's works establish them as two of the greatest cabinet-makers of their times. The stylized decoration and marquetry application on the encoignure also matches the pictorial representation and technical workmanship found in the work of California's Greene & Greene, as compared with a highly important inlaid Honduras mahogany desk made for the living room of the Charles M. Pratt House, Ojai, California, circa 1909 (FIG. 3). This desk, which sold at Christie's New York on 14 June 1985, is finely inlaid and carved with fruitwood, ebony and silver to represent a live oak. The use of expensive materials, adaptation of decorative motifs and intricate techniques on the desk are commonalities shared with Ruhlmann's three-legged corner cabinet.
Ruhlmann's encoignure is one of five three-legged corner cabinets with variants of the same decorative motif. The placement of the largest blossom in the floral composition and of the longest leafy branch hanging below the rim of the vase, in addition to the position of the keyhole, is slightly different on each cabinet. However, the present example was never equalled in its overall composition or in its inlay. In the 1916 encoignure, which was commissioned along with a méridienne, both of amboyna wood, the center rose leans to the right with the pendant branch and keyhole on the left side. The second cabinet, of rosewood, in the Virginia Museum of Art, is the only three-legged cabinet which is unsigned. While the rose, branch and keyhole are in the same positions as in the present example, the ivory dentil decoration does not continue across the upper edge of the cabinet, as seen in Ruhlmann's sketch (FIG. 4) of the three-legged corner cabinet; this variation appears only on this piece. The third cabinet, of amaranth, was ordered by the Mobilier National in 1922. The rose and branch are similarly positioned; however, the keyhole is located on the right side. On the fourth cabinet, also of amaranth, the rose leans to the left with the branch on the right side; the keyhole is on the left side. Recently sold at Drouot auction house, the cabinet is currently in a private collection. The last encoignure of amaranth, which was from a room designed for the Weitz family in 1923, is similar to the third cabinet described above, and is in the collection of The Brooklyn Museum.
Although Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann's 1916 creation of this three-legged corner cabinet defined him as the quintessential designer and craftsman of the Art Deco period, his allegiance to the use of 18th century materials, techniques and forms earned him the reputation of an ébéniste. Ruhlmann's beautiful, exotic veneers and marquetry work and his interpretation of line as decoration also catapaulted him to the forefront of the period, and his incorporation of a stylized oval floral pattern demonstrated a modern interpretation of the traditional flower and urn design.
Of the flowers that served as sources for decorative motifs, Ruhlmann and his contemporaries, such as Paul Iribe, chose to stylize the rose. The "Iribe rose" was popularized in 1910 and preceded the International Exhibition of 1911 in Turin, where flowers, specifically roses, covered the stencilled walls, burst forth from the bas-reliefs, and adorned the capitals of pilasters. Flowers spilling forth from vases and baskets were also found on André Mare's chair designs and on Iribe's carved chairs and inlaid secretaires. From 1916 through the mid-1920s, Ruhlmann elaborated upon the use of the stylized rose in his "Etat d'Angle" and "Etat Rect" cabinets, rejecting the naturalistic floral interpretations of the Art Nouveau period. This theme was taken up again in his red and gray silk damask fabric used for both upholstery and wall covering, circa 1923-24, in the salon of the Weitz' home (FIG. 1).
Ivory enjoyed a renaissance under Ruhlmann. A rare and exotic material used in previous centuries, ivory was re-interpreted by Ruhlmann to provide contrast to rich veneers, while providing a subdued and elegant form of ornamentation. The employment of the stark white ivory in the floral design accentuates the warm honey-colored amboyna ground, creating an illusionistic rendering of the marquetry roses, and the juxtapostion of the dark black ebony wood in the floral pattern against the veneered ground is striking and bold.
The encoignure stylistically and technically ranks among the great marquetry and inlaid works from the 18th century to the 20th century. Its level of craftsmanship is comparable to a Louis XVI ormulu-mounted satinwood and marquetry games table, attributed to David Roëntgen circa 1728, which sold at Christie's New York on 21 October 1997. Although the game table employs the shade marquetry technique, which too includes a depiction of roses (FIG. 2), and the encoignure incorporates a mosaic marquetry technique, both Roëntgen and Ruhlmann's works establish them as two of the greatest cabinet-makers of their times. The stylized decoration and marquetry application on the encoignure also matches the pictorial representation and technical workmanship found in the work of California's Greene & Greene, as compared with a highly important inlaid Honduras mahogany desk made for the living room of the Charles M. Pratt House, Ojai, California, circa 1909 (FIG. 3). This desk, which sold at Christie's New York on 14 June 1985, is finely inlaid and carved with fruitwood, ebony and silver to represent a live oak. The use of expensive materials, adaptation of decorative motifs and intricate techniques on the desk are commonalities shared with Ruhlmann's three-legged corner cabinet.
Ruhlmann's encoignure is one of five three-legged corner cabinets with variants of the same decorative motif. The placement of the largest blossom in the floral composition and of the longest leafy branch hanging below the rim of the vase, in addition to the position of the keyhole, is slightly different on each cabinet. However, the present example was never equalled in its overall composition or in its inlay. In the 1916 encoignure, which was commissioned along with a méridienne, both of amboyna wood, the center rose leans to the right with the pendant branch and keyhole on the left side. The second cabinet, of rosewood, in the Virginia Museum of Art, is the only three-legged cabinet which is unsigned. While the rose, branch and keyhole are in the same positions as in the present example, the ivory dentil decoration does not continue across the upper edge of the cabinet, as seen in Ruhlmann's sketch (FIG. 4) of the three-legged corner cabinet; this variation appears only on this piece. The third cabinet, of amaranth, was ordered by the Mobilier National in 1922. The rose and branch are similarly positioned; however, the keyhole is located on the right side. On the fourth cabinet, also of amaranth, the rose leans to the left with the branch on the right side; the keyhole is on the left side. Recently sold at Drouot auction house, the cabinet is currently in a private collection. The last encoignure of amaranth, which was from a room designed for the Weitz family in 1923, is similar to the third cabinet described above, and is in the collection of The Brooklyn Museum.