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34-506: The Rococo Revival style emerged in Britain and France in the 19th century. Revival of the rococo style was seen all throughout Europe during the 19th century within a variety of artistic modes and expression including decorative objects of art , paintings , art prints, furniture , and interior design . In much of Europe and particularly in France, the original rococo was regarded as

68-457: A 1612 reference from John Webster : Hang him; a gilder that hath his brains perished with quicksilver is not more cold in the liver After around 1830, legislation in France had outlawed the use of mercury, although it continued to be commonly employed until around 1900 and was still in use around 1960 in very few workshops. Other gilding techniques, like electroplating from the mid-19th century on, were utilized. Ormolu techniques are essentially

102-422: A broader audience. Metal works based on Parisian design that were truly rococo were in ormolu , or bronze cover in finely-ground gold. Parisian designers responded to the desire and tastes of Napoleon III and his wife Eugénie . They sought legitimacy of their court through stylistic references to the ancien régime style of Louis XV. The rising bourgeoisie in France demanded rococo decorative-art objects as

136-479: A layered combination of silver and copper. Mass-production also enabled silver embossed with scrolls, flowers, and foliage, which were produced cheaply by steam-presses on thin silver. These wares were made to imply luxury, not previously available on thin-sheeted silver, while mass-production allowed for mass-distribution and export. Historically reserved for royalty and aristocrats, industrialization and technological advances in machinery made rococo silver accessible to

170-522: A national style, and to many, its reemergence recalled national tradition. Rococo revival epitomized grandeur and luxury in European style and was another expression of 19th century romanticism and the growing interest and fascination with natural landscape. During the later half of the nineteenth century, Rococo Revival was also fashionable in American furniture and interior design. John Henry Belter

204-401: A piece of copper , brass , or bronze; followed by the application of an amalgam of gold and mercury. The item is then exposed to extreme heat until the mercury vaporizes and the gold remains, adhering to the metal object. This process has generally been supplanted by the electroplating of gold over a nickel substrate, which is more economical and less dangerous. In literature there is

238-499: A publication by Caroline Ingra, Italian artists came to Paris during the Second Empire in search for artistic opportunities. Rome remained the center for young artists wanting to study classical tradition but not for artists who wanted to study contemporary art. They adapted the fashionable revival of eighteenth-century rococo genre painting. The fame and recognition of these Italian artists of Spanish origin and based primarily on

272-547: A reflection of status, wealth, and material possession. The bourgeois consumer purchased objects and furnishings from a variety of revival styles, including rococo, for its significance in historicizing opulence and grandeur. Modern French Rococo furniture was characterized by its lightness, elegance and grace. Its ornamentation consisted of delicate foliage and intricate details. Other characteristics included: embellished and elaborate carving, rich carving of floral and fruit motifs, curved frames, and tufted upholstery. According to

306-494: A solution to this problem in manufacturing furniture with complicated designs. As a result, Belter patented a process for making laminated furniture. Laminated wood consisted of a number of veneer sheets bound together with hot glue. The bounded sheets were then bent under steam pressure, pressed into molds, and then carved. The process produced stronger pieces of furniture that was less costly than traditional carving and allowed for mass production. Furniture made using this process

340-457: Is found from antiquity onwards across Eurasia, and especially in Chinese art , where it was always more common than silver-gilt, the opposite of Europe. Craftsmen principally used ormolu for the decorative mountings of furniture, clocks, lighting devices, and porcelain. The great French furniture designers and cabinetmakers , or ébénistes , of the 18th and 19th centuries made maximum use of

374-530: Is often entirely chiseled and chased with extraordinary skill and delicacy to create finely varied surfaces. The ormolu technique was extensively used in the French Empire mantel clocks , reaching its peak during this period. Chinese and European porcelains mounted in gilt-bronze were luxury wares that heightened the impact of often-costly and ornamental ceramic pieces sometimes used for display. Chinese ceramics with gilt-bronze mounts were produced under

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408-498: The "second Rococo" and was seen in the visual arts and interior furnishings, but most prominently seen in painting. As demonstrated in a publication by Nora Veszprémi, Rococo reemerged at the 1845 industrial exhibition, where an entire salon was furnished in Rococo style. The opulent room was known as " Kaiser Salon" and many critics regarded the display as "an exciting, new, and modern trend in fashion." Interior design and furnishings at

442-571: The Italian adjective barocco , meaning misshaped, malformed, or convoluted. During the Regency era , the Prince Regent (who later became King George IV ) patronized makers of high-quality works of rococo silver. The Prince Regent favored neoclassical elements of more luxurious interpretations of the late Louis XV and Louis XVI periods. The tastes of the Prince Regent helped fuel interest in

476-511: The Second Empire] however, represented more than a shift in patronage and, consequently, taste. The interest in prerevolutionary art was part of the efforts of Second Empire officialdom to establish legitimacy for itself by connecting with a period when royalty was as yet unchallenged." She continues by asserting, "Reviving this early regime was a means of flattering themselves and emphasizing their own imperialist claims, in hope of achieving

510-400: The awe and respect of the populace supposedly enjoyed by the former regime." The Second Empire was interested in reviving rococo art as a means to regenerate the ideals and values of the old regime. It was a means to emphasize pride, power, and respect in hopes of achieving admiration and devotion enjoyed by the former regime. However, some contemporary figures were appalled and considered that

544-402: The carvings. revival Revival most often refers to: Revival or The Revival may also refer to: Ormolu Craftsmen principally used ormolu for the decorative mountings of furniture, clocks, lighting devices, and porcelain . The manufacture of true ormolu employs a process known as mercury-gilding or fire-gilding , in which a solution of mercuric nitrate is applied to

578-569: The end of the century with the arrival of neoclassicism , the term rococo was used to criticize any neo-classical art in including the Gothic, the Baroque, and any earlier styles of the century. In the mid-nineteenth century, the term rococo referred to a style recalling the ornament and design aesthetics of the Louis XV style and early Louis XVI style . The period between 1715-1745, encompassing

612-505: The exploitation of rococo revival by Italian artists was an inferior body of work. Critics saw this new manner of painting as vapid and without style. The French State sought to promote patrimony following its defeat in Franco-Prussian War . Late 19th-century France heavily invested in rococo style as a means to regenerate national pride and heritage. In Austria and Hungary , revival of the Rococo style came to be known as

646-422: The exquisite gilt-bronze mounts produced by fondeurs-ciseleurs (founders and finishers) such as the renowned Jacques Caffieri (1678–1755), whose finished gilt-bronze pieces were almost as fine as jewelers' work. Ormolu mountings attained their highest artistic and technical development in France. Similarly fine results could be achieved for lighting devices, such as chandeliers and candelabras, as well as for

680-418: The general population were largely receptive. With the commodification of art in the modern world, the style resurfaced in painting. Rococo aspects in painting, both its values and stylistic ornamentation, were considered objects of the past. In opposition to an "intrinsic higher meaning of art," its association with modernity depicts a contrasting former mode of artistic expression as a means of historicizing

714-604: The guidance of the Parisian marchands-merciers , for only they had access to the ceramics (often purchased in the Netherlands) and the ability to overleap the guild restrictions. A few surviving pieces of 16th-century Chinese porcelain subsequently mounted in contemporary European silver-gilt, or vermeil , show where the foundations of the later fashion lay. From the late 1760s, Matthew Boulton (1728–1809) of Birmingham produced English ormolu vases and perfume-burners in

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748-598: The latest Neoclassical style. Though the venture never became a financial success, it produced the finest English ormolu. In the early 19th century fine English ormolu came from the workshops of Benjamin Lewis Vulliamy (1780–1854). In France, the tradition of neoclassic ormolu to Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751–1843) was continued by Lucien-François Feuchère . Beurdeley & Cie. produced excellent ormolu in Rococo and Neoclassical styles in Paris, and rococo gilt-bronze

782-656: The ornamental metal mounts applied to clock cases and to ceramic pieces. In the hands of the Parisian marchands-merciers , the precursors of decorators, ormolu or gilt-bronze sculptures were used for bright, non-oxidizing fireplace accessories or for Rococo or Neoclassical mantel-clocks or wall-mounted clock-cases – a specialty of Charles Cressent (1685–1768) – complemented by rock-crystal drops on gilt-bronze chandeliers and wall-lights. The bronze mounts were cast by lost wax casting , and then chiseled and chased to add detail. Rococo gilt bronze tends to be finely cast, lightly chiseled, and part-burnished. Neoclassical gilt-bronze

816-468: The reign of Louis XV , is generally accepted as the high point of the Rococo style in French art. Rococo was thought to derive from a combination of the French words rocaille , which characterizes a form of colorful and irregular rockwork used to embellish grottoes and fountains, and coquillage , shell motifs that accompanied the rocaille. Another possibility is that the expression combined rocaille with

850-557: The rococo revival spirit in England. Paul Storr was recognized as one of the most important and well-renowned English silversmiths. His quality of workmanship and versatility enabled him to create works that suited a wide range of tastes and preferences. Many rococo themes and motifs can be found in his works. An example of his work is a salver featuring signs of the Zodiac , a border cast chased with rococo scrolls, rococo decoration of

884-411: The same as those used on silver , to produce silver-gilt (also known as vermeil ). A later substitute of a mixture of metals resembling ormolu was developed in France and called pomponne , though the mix of copper and zinc , sometimes with an addition of tin , is technically a type of brass. From the 19th century the term has been popularized to refer to gilt metal or imitation gold. Gilt-bronze

918-530: The surface, and feet in rococo-cartouche form. One of the most monumental works created in rococo expression was Storr’s large candelabrum, created during the reign of William IV . The piece featured flowing branches and rolling, curved surfaces. During the late 1820s, the aristocracy commissioned anti-classical styles, producing a much different expression of rococo in England. Manufacturers in Birmingham and Sheffield became mass-producers of Sheffield plate ,

952-513: The time were generally modest in ornamentation, recalling neoclassical forms of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. The second Rococo was "a product of modern, industrialized Austria and its new middle class of prosperous manufacturers." It appeared within the first decades of nineteenth-century Austria during a period economic and industrial upsurge and was largely a product of industrialization. It had emerged at two industrial exhibitions that promoted Austrian industry, where critics and

986-489: The visual arts. John Henry Belter (1804-1863) was a famous American cabinetmaker of the Rococo Revival era. His name was commonly used as a generic term for all Rococo Revival furniture. Rosewood from Brazil and East India were favored by mid 19th-century patrons of formal furniture. Rosewood is very dense and brittle, and so rosewood furniture is very fragile and known to break under pressure. Laminated woods were

1020-487: The work of Mariano Fortuny . Paris represented the latest in modern artistic development and attracted many artists. Fortuny attracted an audience in Paris upon first appearance in 1860. His work had a resemblance to 18th century paintings by Antoine Watteau and Jean-Honoré Fragonard . The late Second Empire patrons were most interested in Fortuny’s revival of 18th century genre painting . Fortuny’s rococo-revival imagery

1054-477: Was considered the most prominent figure of rococo revival furniture making. Revival of the rococo style was not restricted to a specific time period or place, but occurred in several waves throughout the 19th century. The term Rococo was widely used to designate artistic style of the early 18th century in Europe and especially France. Rococo emerged during the early 18th century as a French mode of interior design and

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1088-585: Was considered the predominant artistic style in Europe at the time. However, there was no "rococo" art—the word "rococo" only emerged following the French Revolution and not commonly used until the early 19th century. Sinuous lines, intricate decoration, and both fanciful and naturalistic motifs characterized the rococo style. As stated in a publication by Nóra Veszprémi, the style was "characterized by intricate and refined ornament" and "associated with luxury, aristocracy, refinement, and wealth." Towards

1122-471: Was especially appealing to the French audience during the last years of the Second Empire. During this period, a major revival interest was seen in 18th century Paris and genre painting that was practiced by academic artists. For the increasing bourgeois audience, the rococo-revival paintings presented an optimistic outlook on life and were appropriate to the new Parisian ‘nobility’ of the late Second Empire. Ingra notes that, "The vogue for rococo imagery [during

1156-457: Was thinner and lighter than of made of solid wood and has the same resistance to breaking. Belter produced intricate designs without use of pierced carvings (which were traditionally used at the time). Belter’s approach to Rococo includes 17th-century motifs for decoration. Carvings on 18th-century Rococo furniture pieces were simpler than the revival pieces. Carvings on 19th-century revival pieces were distinguished by defined details and clarity of

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