PARIS AND THE NORTH: DECORATIVE ARTS IN RUSSIA AND THE BALTIC After centuries of self-imposed isolation Tsar Peter the Great single- handedly, and by sheer force of will, turned Russia to look to the West for expertise and inspiration. While his reasons for this shift were primarily military and economic, the social and cultural effects were profound. And they continued to influence all aspects of Russian life for the following two centuries until the Communist Revolution. The founding of St. Petersburg, in the marshy wilderness of the Neva River near the Gulf of Finland, represented his greatest effort to link Russia with the West. Peter had twice traveled in Western Europe and, in particular, had been overwhelmed not only by the sophisticated court life at Versailles and Paris, but also by the industry of the arts created under Louis XIV. Like many of his contemporary monarchs in Munich, Berlin and Stockholm, among others, he was intent on replicating both the architectural splendor of France but also the decorative arts being made by the French. As he was supervising the construction of his new capital, Peter naturally focused on architects, involving both Jean-Baptiste Leblond, a pupil of Le Nôtre and Nicolas Pineau, who were two of the hundreds of architects and craftsmen he was able to lure to Russia. Their mandate was not only to work, but to instruct a new generation of Russian architects and craftsmen. The new Imperial Tapestry Workshop and Lapidary works were among his efforts to foster the decorative arts. Throughout the eighteenth century, increasingly close ties developed between France and Russia in all of the arts and sciences. But it was during the reign of Peter's granddaughter-in-law, the German princess who would become Empress Catherine II, that the bond between Russia and pre-Revolutionary France was particularly strong. She had close relationships with Diderot and Voltaire and would later purchase both of their libraries, along with the Crozat collection, and invited artists like the sculptors Falconet, father and son, to work in St. Petersburg. As Peter before her, it was Catherine's building program that then influenced the decorative arts collected and commissioned by the court. By the 1770's, Catherine had adopted the neoclassic style, and like many monarchs, was especially enthusiastic about it's allusions to Antiquity. Her architects, Charles Cameron and Giacomo Quarenghi, with their work at Tsarskoe Selo and the Winter Palace, provided inspiration to several generations of Russian architects and designers. So strong was this influence of neoclassicism that even today, St. Petersburg and its surrounding palaces still retain the appearance of a neoclassic city. The decorative arts were equally affected and well into the 1850's objects continued to be designed along late neoclassic and Empire designs. Among the furniture supplied to Catherine II, was a series of pieces by the celebrated cabinet-maker David Roentgen, who then not only influenced the work of his contemporaries such as Heinrich Gambs and Andrei Voronikhin, but several generations of Russian cabinet-makers who continued to produce pieces in the 'Jacob' style. Paul, Catherine's son, even though he despised his mother, relied on both her designers and architects and (also like Catherine) continued to rely on France to provide both artistic inspiration and actual objects for the Imperial palaces. Together with his wife Maria Feodorovna, the Grand Ducal couple made their famous visit to France in 1782, travelling incognito as the Comte and Comtesse du Nord. Although relieved of diplomatic responsibilities, they accumulated many diplomatic gifts, which included the famous Sèvres toilette set presented by Marie-Antoinette to the Grand Duchess and Louis XVI's gift to the Grand Duke Paul of the Don Quixote series of Gobelin tapestries. They also visited the leading cabinet-makers, marchand-merciers including Dominique Daguerre and the Sèvres factory. The Martin Carlin writing table with Sèvres plaques, now in the J. Paul Getty Museum, was purchased from Daguerre and is just one example of the highest quality French decorative arts purchased in Paris. Along with the objects bought on this trip, they continued to order decorative arts from France, for as late as 1799 they were still ordering hundreds of bronzes and other ormolu objets d'art. Many of these objects were purchased for Pavlovsk Palace, their favorite neoclassical country estate. These Russian decorative arts differ from their French prototypes, not only in terms of design but materials used. Perhaps the most characteristic Russian elements were the varied minerals incorporated into both the works of art and furniture. While the 18th and 19th century Russian decorative arts may lack some of the sophistication of the French examples, their originality, together with the distinctive Russian elements, illustrate a unique amalgam of both cultures. PROPERTY FROM AN ESTATE (Lots 275-294)

A BALTIC NEOCLASSIC ORMOLU AND CUT-GLASS EIGHT-LIGHT CHANDELIER

CIRCA 1790

Details

A BALTIC NEOCLASSIC ORMOLU AND CUT-GLASS EIGHT-LIGHT CHANDELIER
Circa 1790
The three coronas linked by chains to the lower tier issuing eight branches with pierced drip-pans and beaded bobèches and pierced opposing palm leaves, over a glazed base and pierced hanging drops, hung overall with faceted droplets, pendants and beading, inscribed B-289X
48in. (122cm.) high, 38in. (97cm.) diameter

Provenance

Mrs. Basil Goulandris, January 22, 1959.
Purchased from the above on 22 January 1959 by French & Co., New York, March 31, 1960 ($4,500).

Lot Essay

The unusual design of this chandelier bears some resemblance to the distinctive chandeliers made by Ivan, or Johann Zech and his workshop through the 1790's. Zeck, one of the most celebrated makers of chandeliers in St. Petersburg, produced pieces for the Winter Palace, Mikhaylovsky Palace and many for Pavlovsk.

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