Display | Jean-Henri Riesener (1734–1806)
Based on press releases from VisitParis and Art Media Agency:
Jean-Henri Riesener (1734–1806)
Biennale des Antiquaires, Grand Palais, Paris, 14-23 September 2012
Organized by Kraemer & Cie
The Maison Kraemer, a Parisian gallery specialising in pieces from the 17th and 18th centuries, is organising the first ever exhibition to be entirely dedicated to the cabinet-maker Jean-Henri Riesener (1734-1806). It will run from the 14 to the 23 of September at stall 32 during the 26th Biennale des Antiquares. The solo exhibition is then to go on tour.
Introduced to the art of cabinetmaking by Jean-Francois Oeben, Riesener became a master in 1768, and was designated ‘carpenter to the King’ in 1774. He also supplied Queen Marie-Antoinette with furniture, creating for the Court and the Royal Family a collection of stunningly beautiful pieces of furniture, characterized the remarkable finesse in his use of gilt bronzes and precious inlay decorations. Riesener is one of the most commonly displayed cabinet-makers in museums throughout the world. Examples include the Louvre museum, the Château de Versailles, the Nassim de Camondo museum, the New York Metropolitan Museum and the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. At auction, his pieces regularly sell for remarkable prices:
• In 1999 a chest of drawers was sold by Christie’s for £7,041,500 or €8.5 million (with fees)
• In 2007 a chest of drawers was sold by Sotheby’s for €3,952,250 (with fees)
• In 2000, a desk was sold by Christie’s for £1,214,750 or €1.5 million (with fees)
• Recently, a chest of draws put up for sale by the auction house Sotheby’s in October 2011, estimated to be worth between €20-30 million, was sold for only €24,750.
Also see the article by Susan Moore for Apollo Magazine (September 2012) and the coverage (in French) at Artistik Rezo.
Art Fair | 2012 Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris
2012 Biennale des Antiquaires
Grand Palais, Paris, 14-23 September 2012
In the September 2012 issue of Apollo Magazine, Susan Moore previews the upcoming Biennale des Antiquaires, which thanks to the design work of Karl Lagerfeld is sure to garner plenty of press coverage in the coming weeks (he’s briefly profiled with a tease for the event in the current issue of Elle Decor). While the art fair will present a wide range of offerings (in keeping with the general trends of similar recent events), the established dealers of French decorative arts are to be well represented. As Moore writes:
Kraemer & Cie, for instance, arguably the grandest of them all, is presenting the first ever exhibition devoted to the great French cabinetmaker Jean-Henri Riesener (1734–1806; see Collectors’ Focus, pp. 94–95). Trained by Jean-François Oeben, Riesener became a maitre ébéniste in 1768 and was appointed ébéniste du roi to Louis XVI in 1774. He was also Marie-Antoinette’s preferred supplier. ‘While a lot of cabinet-makers at the time may seem similar,’ explains Laurent Kraemer, ‘Riesener’s work is immediately identifiable by the perfection of proportion and execution – whether [he was] producing extremely rich marquetry for the court or very simple mahogany pieces with no or few gilt-bronze mounts.’ Some 20 pieces will be presented in a simple museum-style display, including a transitional Louis XV–Louis XVI commode with a central panel comprising a polychrome marquetry vase of flowers, as well as a Louis XVI mahogany and mahogany veneered writing desk and cartonnier ornamented with chased and gilt-bronze mounts. Riesener’s only known pair of cabinets is also on display, along with two tables from Versailles. According to M. Kraemer, the last three years have seen a rise in the number of international collectors buying at the very top level. Prices here range from €50,000 to ‘many hundred thousands’. After the fair, the exhibition will transfer to the gallery on the rue de Monceau.
Other exhibitors represent 18th-century objets d’art, their wares displayed in a traditional setting. François Léage specialises in outstanding pieces of the period, and has installed the panelling from the Grand Salon of the Paris home of Le Normand de Mézières. It provides the perfect mise en scène for a handsome pair of ormolu and serpentine oval covered vases – a similar pair adorn the Queen’s private apartments at Versailles.
The full article is available here»
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