YouTube: English Renaissance Furniture

I found a short video with some pictures of English Renaissance furniture and some interesting information about them. I especially liked the part that explained how the Farthingale chair was wider in the front to accommodate the ladies of the time's wide skirts.

English Renaissance Blog Response

This week I looked at Yo and Rachael's blogs.

I liked how Yo focused on Robert Adam. It allowed me to learn a lot more about him as a designer specifically. I liked how he focused on a couple of houses he worked on as well as his style. I also liked how he tried to find modern applications that resembled Adam's style.

This is Adam's Lansdowne House which was my favorite picture on Yo's blog.

Rachael's blog focused on the furniture designers Chippendale, Adam, Hepplewhite, and Sheraton. She also talked about William & Mary and Queen Anne. I liked how she went into specific detail about Queen Anne and Chippendale's unique styles.

I liked this picture from Rachael's blog which is a modern day dining table using Chippendale's chinese style chairs.

Late English Renaissance

What I Learned

The late portion of the English Renaissance is from 1750-1830. In the furniture world this includes Middle Georgian, Late Georgian, and Neoclassical styles. Middle Georgian was known as the age of mahogany and is named after the furniture makers George II and George III Chippendale. Late Georgian was known as the age of satinwood and was the end of George III furniture making and included work by Adam Chippendale, Hepplewhite, and Sheraton. Neoclassical was a revival of interest in the arts of Greece and Rome which was brought on and inspired by the excavations of Pompeii. This period was a reaction against the French Rococo period.

Robert Adam was famous at this time. He was an architect, interior designer, and a furniture designer. He studied in Italy and was serious about the revival of classical design. His designs were delicate with fine details and many of his furniture designs are included in his famous book "The Works in Architecture." He worked with a complete integration of all design elements including: furniture, light fixtures, floor coverings, textiles, silver, pottery, and metal work. 

Adam went though a couple different design phases throughout his career. The first (1756-1770) was bold, masculine, and large in scale. It was classical rather than Rococo in style. His second phase (1770-1792) was more delicate and feminine. This influenced French designers at the end of Louis XVI's reign. Mirrors played an important role in his designs. Fabric patterns he was famous for using included: moire, brocade, satin, stripes, and toile. He also created the sideboard which is a wide table with drawers that was created to be placed in the dining room for serving.

Sideboard

Another famous person from this time period was George Hepplewhite. He brought Neoclassic style to the masses and it is still being used today. Neoclassic devices he used included: urns, reeding, oval paterae, ribbons, vases, fluting, and festoons. He didn't use glass in doors and he made satinwood popular. He also invented the washstand.

Washstand

George Hepplewhite's chairs included these characteristics:

• Straight, slender, and slightly tapered legs usually ending in a spade foot.
• Some have stretchers.
• The backs are either oval, shield, or heart shaped with a variety of back splats and pierced designs. Also some backs were upholstered.

The last famous furniture designer I'm going to talk about from this time is Thomas Sheraton. He used satinwood or mahogany for his chairs and their legs were similar to Hepplewhite's chairs' legs. His style was elegant, crisp, and light. Sheraton's furniture didn't use complicated curves and ornament was restricted to the inlay, marquetry, or painted designs. His chairs had square back legs which is mirrored in the seat design. His furniture also included an ornate top rail. Fabrics he used included: satin, silk, chintz, damask, toile, and brocade. He also created the kidney-shaped pedestal desk.

Kidney-shaped pedestal desk

My Favorites

Modern Applications

French Renaissance Blog Response

This week I looked at Katrina and Ariana's blogs.

I liked all of the details Katrina went into about the Rococo style. I specifically liked how she talked about how the Regency and Rococo styles were both very feminine styles and that their furniture was made to support the contours of the human body. She also and showed the characteristics of a cabriole leg and talked about how it brought a feminine quality to the furniture.

Katrina's picture detailing the cabriole leg.

I liked how Ariana talked specifically about the Chateau de Chambord. I also liked how she mentioned its history of being a hunting lodge that was left abandoned and unfurnished before Louis XII came into the picture and gave it to his brother to restore.

Ariana's picture of the Chateau.

French Renaissance - Baroque

What I Learned

Louis XIII died in 1643 and Louis XIV was proclaimed king at only 5 years old. He became known as the "Sun King." Louis XIV created a national style of art and established a school for 60 children where they became "masters" of their craft under the King's protection. 

Louis's Superintendent of Finances was a man by the name of Nicolas Fouquet who was arrested for embezzlement. This led to his craftsmen coming under the employment of Louis XIV. From this Louis gained Louis Le Vau (architect), Andre Le Notre (garden designer), Charles LeBrun (painter for the interiors, decorator and architect), and Puget (sculptor) who all worked on the rooms at Vaux-le-Vicomte and Palais de Versailles. The Palais de Versailles used classical architecture and decoration. It also used regal dimensions (15' ceilings and 11' doors) and had a symmetrical design. The gardens were an attempt to recreate ancient Roman villas.

Louis XIV considered himself the most powerful ruler in the world. Versailles and the Grand Trianon were built to show his power as well as to pull the branches of governmental power from Paris to Versailles where he could have more control over them.

Baroque furniture used a marquetry process. Andre Charles Boulle is the master of this method and a chief cabinetmaker. He worked at Versailles and made marquetry furniture for it. Materials for marquetry included: tortoiseshell, metal (brass or silver), and ebony. Andre also used pewter, copper, and mother of pearl.

My Favorites

Façade of the Church of the Gesù, the first truly baroque façade.

Versailles's chapel.

Chapel of the Church of Santo Domingo.

Modern Applications

Baroque-style home theater.

Baroque-style bathroom.

Bedroom done in French Renaissance style. This is in a house done for the show Big Brother.

To see more pictures of the house go here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2524597/Celebrity-Big-Brother-2014-house-Renaissance-inspired-makeover.html