Designers 18th century
Michel Victor Acier was a French porcelain sculptor and model-maker who worked at the famous Saxon porcelain manufactory in Meissen from 1765 to 1779. With his work in the activities of the manufactory is associated with the period of neoclassicism. Michel-Victor was the maternal great-grandfather of the composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
André-Charles Boulle, a French artist and cabinetmaker, was celebrated for his mastery in marquetry, a decorative technique involving inlaid veneers of wood, metal, and tortoiseshell. Born in Paris in 1642, Boulle's work defined luxury and sophistication in 17th and 18th-century French furniture, earning him the title of "Premier ébéniste du Roi" under Louis XIV. His contributions to art and culture extend beyond mere craftsmanship, embodying the opulence of the Louis XIV style and influencing European decorative arts profoundly.
Boulle's innovative techniques, particularly his unique use of marquetry, known as "Boulle work," involved intricate patterns of brass, pewter, and tortoiseshell, setting new standards for furniture design. This approach allowed him to create stunning visual effects, with his creations including clocks, cabinets, and tables that showcased both artistic flair and technical brilliance. His work, characterized by elaborate motifs and an exceptional blend of materials, is regarded as the epitome of Baroque artistry, blending sculpture, painting, and architecture into functional objects of beauty.
Several of Boulle's masterpieces are preserved in prestigious museums, such as the Louvre and the Palace of Versailles, where they continue to captivate visitors with their intricate details and historical significance. Notable works attributed to him, like the intricate coffers on stands and monumental cabinets housed in the J. Paul Getty Museum, reflect his role as a "painter in wood," celebrating French military victories and the grandeur of the Sun King's court. These pieces, never signed but attributed to him based on stylistic elements and historical records, highlight Boulle's innovative use of materials and his impact on the decorative arts.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, André-Charles Boulle's work represents the zenith of French decorative arts. His legacy is not only in the beauty of his creations but also in the techniques he perfected, which continue to inspire contemporary designers and craftsmen. Those interested in the elegance and history of Boulle's work are encouraged to sign up for updates on new product sales and auction events related to this iconic artist. This subscription offers a unique opportunity to connect with the world of André-Charles Boulle, ensuring enthusiasts are informed of the latest discoveries and offerings that celebrate his enduring influence on culture, art, and design.
Philippe Caffiéri was a French sculptor. The son of Jacques Caffieri, he was received as a maître fondeur-ciseleur, joined his father's workshop and sometimes signed his independent works, especially after the death of his father in 1755, P.CAFFIERI.
Louis Carrogis, better known as Carmontelle was a French artist, garden designer, architect, playwright and inventor.
Carmontelle was of simple origins but versatilely gifted. He wrote several plays and three novels, and created portraits of historical figures. He became famous for his painting of little Mozart at the clavier. In the service of Louis-Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, he was responsible for the theatrical performances for the family as stage designer and stage director.
Carmontelle is the planner and designer of one of the earliest examples of a French landscape garden in Paris, now known as Parc Monceau. In designing the garden, Carmontel rejected many of the fashionable trends in landscape design at the time, drawing inspiration from Japanese pleasure gardens and insisting on incorporating illusion and fantasy.
Carmontelle is also credited as the inventor of animated images. Translucent tape with landscapes depicted on it was slowly rolled from one roll to another against a backdrop of daylight, thus creating the illusion of walking through a garden.
Pieter Casteels III was a Flemish painter, engraver and designer, a member of the Guild of St. Luke in Antwerp.
He was born into the family of the painter Pieter Casteels II or the Younger (1673-1701), who gave his son his first lessons in painting. In 1708 Peter went to London, where he became active in the London art community and a member of the Rose and Crown Club.
Casteells successfully painted numerous floral still lifes with exotic birds, which were favored by the nobility of the time, as well as idyllic scenes with domestic birds and animals. His works were also often used as decorations for fireplaces and doors. The great success of this genre led the artist to publish the Twelve Months of Flowers and Twelve Months of Fruit series - these prints served as models for workers in textiles and other luxury industries.
In 1735 Peter Casteells III retired from painting and turned his attention to textile design, working for the rest of his life for textile manufacturers in Surrey and then London.
Thomas Chippendale was a cabinet-maker in London, designing furniture in the mid-Georgian, English Rococo, and Neoclassical styles. In 1754 he published a book of his designs in a trade catalogue titled The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director — the most important collection of furniture designs published in England to that point which created a mass market for furniture—upon which success he became renowned. According to the Victoria and Albert Museum, «so influential were his designs, in Britain and throughout Europe and America, that "Chippendale" became a shorthand description for any furniture similar to his Director designs».
William Dunlap was an American playwright, theater director, artist, and historian.
William Dunlap was a pioneer of the young country's theater. He directed two of New York City's earliest and most famous theaters, the John Street Theater and the Theater in the Park. During his lifetime he directed over sixty plays, most of which were adaptations or translations of French and German works. But among them were some original ones based on American themes with American characters.
In 1832 Dunlap published A History of the American Theater in two volumes. In 1825, Dunlap co-founded the National Academy of Design and taught at its school. Even today, Dunlap is best known for his encyclopedic three-volume History of the Origin and Progress of the Art of Design in the United States. The book was published in 1834 and is now an invaluable source of information about artists, collecting, and artistic endeavors in the country of that historical period.
Domenico Fossati was an Italian artist, painter, architect and stage designer of the second half of the 18th century.
Fossati studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice. His works as a set designer and scenographer can be found in the theaters and palaces of Venice, Padua and other Italian cities, as well as at La Scala in Milan. Fossati's folios with his ink sketches of stage sets, details of rococo ornamentation, and drawings of fantastic creatures inhabiting an outlandish world have also survived.
Johann Gregor Höroldt was a German porcelain artist who developed the Meissen porcelain style. Höroldt was trained as a miniature and enamel painter.
Between 1719 and 1720 he worked at the porcelain manufactory in Vienna, recently founded by Du Pacquier, and then moved to Meissen and began his collaboration with the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory. In 1724 he was appointed court painter. In 1731, Höroldt became an arcanist (a chemist, a key figure in porcelain production), and was simultaneously appointed head of the entire painting department and court commissioner.
Höroldt influenced virtually all European porcelain and faience manufactories. He specialized in the fashionable and popular chinoiserie design, but also introduced European landscapes, harbor and battle scenes, still lifes, and bird images as porcelain decoration.
The artist also significantly expanded the palette of colors used in Meissen: in the early XVIII century. was available only five paints for glaze, and Höroldt by 1731 increased the palette to 16 colors. He attached great importance and the original form for porcelain, trying to make it different from the usual dishes.
Amelia Hannah Long, Lady Farnborough was a British watercolor artist.
She was the heiress to her parents' art collection and is known as an art connoisseur as well as an accomplished horticultural designer of garden layouts.
In painting, Amelia Long specialized in watercolor landscapes of her home area of Bromley in Kent County. Her work is held in Galleries Scotland, Dundee Art Gallery, the British Museum and Bromley Historical Collections.
Jean-Baptiste Pillement was a French painter and designer, known for his exquisite and delicate landscapes, but whose importance lies primarily in the engravings done after his drawings, and their influence in spreading the Rococo style and particularly the taste for chinoiserie throughout Europe.
Christian Bernhard Rode was a German painter of the second half of the eighteenth century. He is known as a historical painter and printmaker, closely associated with the Berlin Enlightenment movement.
Bernhard Rode became famous for his works depicting historical events and allegorical works. His works combined a variety of techniques, including paintings, engravings, book illustrations, and reliefs. He embodied motifs from the Old Testament, ancient mythology, history, and literature contemporary to him.
Rode was director of the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts from 1783 to 1797.
Thomas Sheraton was a furniture designer, one of the «big three» English furniture makers of the 18th century, along with Thomas Chippendale and George Hepplewhite. Sheraton gave his name to a style of furniture characterized by a feminine refinement of late Georgian styles and became the most powerful source of inspiration behind the furniture of the late 18th century.
Christian Gottlieb Steinlen, also known as Théophile Steinlein, was a Swiss painter, watercolorist, illustrator and engraver.
Steinlein created many views of Vevey's surroundings and taught at the Vevey College of Fine Arts. He was responsible for the design of the official album for Vevey's grand celebration, the 1833 Winegrowers' Festival, and was also the designer of the participants' costumes and decorations. The official booklet he created included several wood-engraved illustrations as well as two sets of thirty engraved plates.
The artist Theophile Alexander Steinlen (1859-1923) was the grandson of Christian Gottlieb Steinlen.
