Pair of Chinese lacquer corner pieces stamped Louis Foureau

Pair of Chinese lacquered corner pieces decorated with chased and gilded bronzes, keyholes, belt and feet with arabesque and interlacing decorations. Opening by a leaf (one on the right, the other on the left), the corners have a polychrome decoration of gold slightly in relief on a black background. It represents a landscape with lush greenery, in which female and male figures stand on the edge of a river bank. The corners are surmounted by a molded marble top that surrounds the piece of furniture (probably Belgian Sainte-Anne grey). The frame is in oak.
Stamped Louis Foureau and JME
Transitional period
Restoration of use, marble slightly damaged restored
H. 89 x W. 71 x D. 45 cm

Louis Foureau is a cabinetmaker received master in Paris in 1755. He practiced for over thirty years in the rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis. He specialized in the production of furniture in European varnish imitating Chinese lacquer with a black background. His productions are first in the Louis XV style, then they are in the Transition and Louis XVI styles. They remain very sober and bronzes are rare.  The decoration then takes precedence over the lines. They have a decoration of Chinese landscapes, pagodas and animals, our pair of corner is the perfect representation. Several of his works are today preserved in museum collections like the corner of the Carnavalet Museum.

Bibliography : Salverte François de, Les ébénistes du XVIIIe siècle, leurs oeuvres et leurs marques, 1923, Pairs, p. 118