HOUSE AND GARDEN 
November, 
1910 
279 
and many colored woods in mar- 
quetrie, but his most wonderful 
work was done in brass and gilded 
bronze. 
The great influence of the Or¬ 
ient at this time is very noticable. 
There had been a beginning of it 
in the previous reign, but during 
the Regency and the reign of 
Louis XV it became very marked. 
“Singerie” and “Chinoiserie” were 
the rage, and gay little monkeys 
clambered and climbed over walls 
and furniture with a careless 
abandon that had a certain fas¬ 
cination and charm in spite of 
their being monkeys. The “Salon 
des Singes'’ in the Chateau de 
Chantilly gives one a good idea 
of this. The style was easily overdone and did not last a 
great while. 
During this time of Oriental influence lacquer was much used 
and beautiful lacquer panels became one of the great features 
of French furniture. Pieces of furniture were sent to China 
and Japan to be lacquered and this, combined with the expense 
of importing it, led many men in France to try to find out the 
Oriental secret. Le Sieur Dagly was supposed to have imported 
the secret and was established at the Gobelin works where he 
made what was called “vernis de Gobelin.” The Martin family 
evolved a most characteristically French style of decoration 
from the Chinese and Japanese lacquers. The varnish they made, 
called “Vernis Martin,” gave its name to the furniture deco¬ 
rated by them, which was well suited to the dainty boudoirs of 
the day. All kinds of furniture were decorated in this way — 
sedan chairs and even snuff-boxes, until at last the supply be¬ 
came so great that the fashion died. There are many charming 
examples of it to be seen in museums and private collections, but 
the modern garish copies of it in many shops give no idea of the 
charm of the original. Watteau s de¬ 
lightful decorations also give the true 
spirit of the time, with their gaiety and 
frivolity showing the Arcadian affecta¬ 
tions — the fad of the moment. 
As time passed decoration grew 
more and more ornate, and the follow¬ 
ers of Cressant exaggerated his traits. 
One of these was Jules Aurele Meis- 
sonier, an Italian by birth, who brought 
with him to France the decadent Ital¬ 
ian taste. He had a most marvelous 
power of invention and lavished orna¬ 
ment on everything, carrying the ro- 
caille style to its utmost limit. He 
broke up all straight lines, put curves 
and convolutions everywhere, and 
rarely had two sides alike, for sym¬ 
metry had no charms for him. The 
curved endive decoration was used in 
architraves, in the panels of overdoors 
and panel moldings, everywhere it pos¬ 
sibly could be used, in fact. His work 
was in great demand by the king and 
nobility. He designed furniture of all 
kinds, altars, sledges, candelabra and a 
great amount of silversmith’s work, and 
also published a book of designs. It is 
this rocaille style that is usually meant 
when one speaks of the style of 
Louis XV. 
Furniture as well as wall deco¬ 
ration showed its influence. 
Chairs were carved and gilded, or 
painted, or lacquered, and also 
beautiful natural woods were 
used. The sofas and chairs had 
a general square appearance, but 
the framework was much curved 
and carved and gilded. They 
were upholstered in silks, bro¬ 
cades, velvets, damasks in flow¬ 
ered designs, edged with braid. 
Gobelin, Aubusson and Beauvais 
tapestry, with Watteau designs, 
were also used. One attractive 
little chair that might be well 
copied nowadays and be most 
popular, was called “fauteuil de commodite.” It had a little 
desk attached to it, with sconces for candles at the side. Desks 
were much used and were conveniently arranged with drawers, 
pigeon-holes and shelves, and roll-top desks were made at this 
time. Commodes were painted, or richly ornamented with lac¬ 
quer panels, or panels of rosewood or violet wood, and all were 
embellished with wonderful bronze or ormolu. Many pieces of 
furniture were inlaid with lovely Sevres plaques. There were 
many different and elaborate kinds of beds, taking their names 
from their form and draping. “ Lit d’anglaise” had a back, head- 
board and foot-board, and could be used as a sofa. “Lit a Ro- 
maine” had a canopy and four festooned curtains, and so on. 
The most common form of salon was rectangular, with pro¬ 
portions of 4 to 3, or 2 to 1. There were also many square, 
round, octagonal and oval salons, these last being among the 
most beautiful. They all were decorated with great richness, 
the walls being paneled with carved and gilded — or partially 
gilded — wood. Tapestry and brocade and painted panels were 
used. Large mirrors with elaborate frames were placed over 
D ?™ n g Regency and the reign of Louis XV a curious Oriental influence became marked. 
lingerie and "Chinoiserie” became the rage, and monkeys were used with a careless aban¬ 
don throughout the decoration, as in this Salon des Singes in the Chateau de Chantilly 
A large desk now in the Louvre representing the Regency. 
The furniture of the Regency developed from that of Louis 
XIV into a greater suppleness and more frequent use of 
sculptures in metal for the applied decoration, with the 
introduction of the shell as a motive 
