- Included for the first time in one volume are all Galle's major works of furniture, both those he designed as unique pieces for an exclusive clientele and those he displayed at two World Expositions and at the annual Paris Salons between 1889 and his untimely death in 1904
Emille Gallé was one of the great names of the Art Nouveau movement in France, and founder of the famous École de Nancy. A polymath and committed social activist, he was best known for his glasswork and faience. Furniture became his third discipline after experimenting with the manufacture of wooden bases on which he could mount his glass vases.
Following the French tradition of furniture decoration known as marqueterie, his work is characterised by its meticulous decorative veneers, stained with subtle organic dyes; and panels inlaid with stunningly intricate country scenes and flowers.
This important book outlines all of Galle's major works of furniture, from the pieces uniques that were designed for an exclusive clientele, to those displayed between 1889 and 1904 at the annual Paris Salons and two World Expositions. The recent emergence of many of his objets de luxe enables the reader to understand many of his pieces for the first time.
Written by Decorative Arts specialist Alastair Duncan, Gallé Furniture documents the history of Gallé's furniture production from his favourite motifs to the ways in which he used furniture design to express his social and political ideals. Duncan includes an encyclopedic range of models created in the Gallé Workshops both during and after his lifetime. Beautifully illustrated, and containing translations of Gallé's 'Notes to the Juries' of the World Expositions, this stunning publication will leave the reader captivated by this remarkable expression of the new art that changed the European aesthetic forever.
Forthcoming:
Gallé Lamps ISBN: 9781851496716
Alastair Duncan, worked for Christie's, New York, for fourteen years (1977-1990). He is now an independent consultant for 19th and 20th Century Decorative Arts. While working at Christie's, he organised and catalogued scores of sales devoted to Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Victorian works of art. Mr. Duncan has travelled throughout the United States, the Far East, Europe, and South America to appraise, assemble and sell collections from the period. He has written many articles, exhibition catalogues and books, including several for the Antique Collectors' Club, including Louis C. Tiffany: Garden Museum Collection, Tiffany Lamps and Metalware and the Paris Salons series.
