VENICE, MID-18TH CENTURY

This attractive Venetian comodino laccato with its rococo waved serpentine form is decorated throughout with turquoise lacca and contrasting delicate floral sprays and darker blue borders. It epitomizes the apogee of the 18th century Venetian production. Venice, with its extensive trading contacts with the East, was one of the first cities in Europe to produce imitations of oriental lacquer. While lacquer wares in Venice differed from other European centres by often imitating oriental lacquer, the depentori (Venetian craftsmen specialised in lacca decoration) decorated commodes, comodini and other wares with their own interpretations which often left little oriental influence to their production. Floral sprays against a ground colour (often turquoise as in this case) was one of the most favoured decorative schemes. This delightful example of comodino is among the most spectacular creations of Venetian cabinet-makers with its bombé shape and curvaceous form and delicate decoration, one of the key characteristics of Venetian mid-18th century furniture production. Its original decoration was protected by the varnish (sandracca) originally applied to the painted surface.