January, 1916 
49 
Painted panels of conventionalized flower de¬ 
sign are suitable for framing in oak panelling, 
or they may be placed over a high wainscot 
V THE RETURN OF X 
THE PAINTED PANEL 
Its Effective Use in the 
Modern Room—Other 
Suggestions for Panelled 
Wall Treatment 
AGNES FOSTER 
Questions on house furnishing and decora¬ 
tion will be answered promptly and with¬ 
out charge by this department. Readers 
desiring color schemes will kindly state 
exposure of the room. Fabrics and 
articles shown here can be pur¬ 
chased through House & 
s. Garden. Send a self-ad- /. 
AN dressed stamped 
\sxn envelope. 
:.■ ' 
Courtesy of Claire Avery 
Many of the American panels have 
the spirit of the French panels with 
their classical backgrounds 
At the mention of 
a panel picture we 
get the image of a 
grandiose salon with 
enormous oil paint¬ 
ings set in gorgeous 
gilt roccoco panelling; 
or else the priceless 
and exquisite inserts 
of Louis XVI cha¬ 
teau interiors. But 
the costliness of the 
old-time panels need 
not deter the present- 
day decorator. Hav¬ 
ing that precedent, 
we need only adapt 
them to our modern 
architectural b a c k- 
grounds, suiting size, 
subject and cost ,t° 
our interiors. And in 
that use there is but 
one rule to observe: 
that the panel picture 
is a part of the wall 
decoration, and not a 
movable accessory. 
Bare wall spaces 
should be broken by 
spots of interest, and 
for this use the painted panel is admirably 
adapted since it is a decoration which partakes 
of the structure and architecture of the room. 
In place of a group of many small pictures, 
however good, one large picture, appropriate in 
subject and color, inserted in the wall, framed 
with a moulding that corresponds to the rest 
of the architectural details, gives a room dis¬ 
tinction, unity and real style. 
In this way may we make use of an oil 
painting. Formerly the picture, framed elab¬ 
orately, was hung by a wire at an angle from 
the wall. There it gave no feeling of being part 
of the room itself, however appropriate its sub¬ 
ject. Stripped of the frame, set close against 
the wall, and framed with a moulding similar 
to that used elsewhere in the room—and you 
have a consistent and truly decorative wall treat¬ 
ment. _ Generally speaking, an oil painting, if 
dark in tone, requires a panelled room. The 
picture should be framed by the panelling, as 
though it were especially designed for that 
purpose. 
grey walls and 
mouldings of a 
darker tone would 
make an admirable 
background for a 
French panel picture. 
In a small simple 
room, such as a bed¬ 
room, boudoir or 
morning room, cream 
or grey tone wall, 
with panels of Louis 
XVI mezzotints, give 
the room much the 
spirit of the French 
petit-salon. 
The greatest care 
should be taken with 
the placement of 
these painted panels, 
as, once in place, 
they cannot readily be 
changed. They must 
look as though they 
were absolutely de¬ 
signed to suit the 
space and the room. 
They must be excel¬ 
lent in execution, as 
we may not change 
them as we do a pic¬ 
ture from a wire on a wall. Above all, they 
should not be covered with glass, as they are an in¬ 
tegral part of the wall, not an applied ornament. 
A painted panel should be decorative in its 
execution, not naturalistic. It should be done 
flatly and directly. Recall, for example, some of 
the panels in the restaurants of Germany. The 
color and drawing is bold and virile. One feels 
they partake of the very sturdiness of the oak 
panelling with which they are surrounded. 
The over-doors may be treated in the same way 
as the over-mantels: simply decorative panels re¬ 
lated to the more pretentious one of the mantel. 
As the hearthstone symbolizes welcome to the 
house, so should the panel above the mantel sym¬ 
bolize the spirit of the house. This is becoming 
more and more the practice in modern houses. 
The architect leaves the clear space over the 
mantel for the owner to insert his own panel 
painted especially for his house, as an individual 
expression of what his house stands for. 
In a dining-room, oval panel with flower deco- 
(Continued on page 64) 
Courtesy of Claire Avery 
A painted panel should be decora¬ 
tive in its execution and not natural¬ 
istic, and it should be done flatly 
Courtesy of the Misses Kelly. 
In the boudoir or morning room French grotesque panels of Louis XVI style 
showing Chinese influence could be used. Some furnishings of the room should 
show the same period characteristics 
Dark oil paintings are appropriate in a din¬ 
ing-room, library or living-room. If a room 
lacks dignity, a subdued panel picture will give 
it. If the room needs humanizing, a fresh 
landscape filled with dazzling sunlight and soft 
greens will relieve the austerity of the con¬ 
strained and cold interior. 
Portraits as Panels 
The question of the family portrait may thus 
be solved. Imagine the additional pride and glory 
accorded them when set into the very wall 
foundations of our house and home! Use two 
full lengths on either side of the library fire¬ 
place, and, as an oval-mantel, the portrait of 
a proud ancestor. 
Painted panels may be used on either side 
of a mirror, the whole being framed as a unit 
and being set close against the wall. Decora¬ 
tive figures of a French or Colonial style look 
especially well. These require a lighter sort of 
treatment, both as to width of moulding and 
color of panelling. A drawing-room with French 
