Marie Antoinette's

A lovely chest of drawers which stands low, on four ornamented feet.   It is elaborately decorated in the round and the drawers are almost masked by the gilt details.  The handles used to open the drawers are actually created from the dragons' bodies which seem (and do) lift right off the surface they fly around.  The top is smooth marble, and there is an emphasized detail of the late, great Sun King in the center.

What do you say? For your château?

This porcelain vessel is intended to hold fragrant potpourri.  It is decorated in the Chinoiserie style, in a soft pink with gold, cream and green accents.  Three men lounge and play a table game in the center of the vessel.  The top is detailed with a faux piece of silk (also porcelain) decorated with gold fleur de lis across it.  Madame de Pompadour had this piece on her mantel, would you have it in your château?

The Victoria & Albert Museum is now showing the exhibition Objects of Luxury: French porcelain of the eighteenth century, through June (the website says May and June... I will go with June!).  The show features (surprise!) French porcelain pieces, created throughout the 18th century.

The French pieces rivaled all others created in Europe in beauty and color.  Due to the production process, more colors could be used on French porcelain than other types;the soft white of the material was unique, if not very translucent. The white has been described as, "a fine, solid white grain like squeezed snow." How lovely!
 
The end of the 17th century saw an increase in the manufacturing of porcelain on both the continent and in England.  French porcelain, as it would become known, was very difficult to make and was created with a soft paste rather than hard paste.  It was also considered artificial porcelain, but the costly pieces were kept in demand for most of the century. Likewise, a different type of porcelain was developed in Germany, (German porcelain) and later on the English would profit on their bone-porcelain.

French porcelain was difficult to make, thus it became very pricey.  So costly was the entire production of the porcelain that the demand in many countries diminished rather quickly.  English manufactures took to adding bone-ash to the paste, and soon there were no English manufactures creating the soft-paste French Porcelain. 

Why did the popularity of this expensive form of porcelain remain so strong for so many decades in France?  The glittering court, of course.  The court of Louis XV spent plenty to acquire the delicate pieces, and their patronage kept manufacturers in good business.  Eventually the modest porcelain factories gave way to the larger elite manufacturers such as Sèvres, which received incredible patronage from Louis XV and Madame de Pompadour.

Sèvres had the best of the best working for it, as it was under the royal patronage.  The result of the royal patronage were pieces of amazing quality, detail, style and beauty.  The exhibition Objects of Luxury takes these creations and puts them together to present the impressive products of French porcelain manufacturers.  The pieces, fit for the most dazzling courts, will give you an idea of the time, quality and thought behind each work.  The show also features the different factories that were in production at the time such as Saint-Cloud, Vincennes and Chantilly.

It is easy to see why this French Porcelain was so in demand. If you visit the exhibition you will notice the wide range of colors the pieces are decorated in.  See if you can pick out any pieces colored with the popular: rose-Pompadour.

If you will not be able to make it to the exhibition, be sure to pick up the exhibition book.
French Porcelain of the 18th Century in the Victoria & Albert Museum which is released February 1, 2010 on Amazon.
If you are a UK customer you can  get it now from Amazon.uk
Or from the Victoria & Albert Museum shop

Been called to town on business, hope everyone has a lovely weekend.  Here are some visual updates of my own:

What 18th century furnishings do you want in your living room? When you see a piece like this one, it really stands out as the perfect conversation piece.

Guest come in, look around, see it, go through the usual chit chat, maybe mosey over to it and finally pop the question: This is amazing/so different/unique where did you get it! or what is this!?

Yes a conversation piece that leads to a conversation you would just love to have! You can unleash your inner love for the 18th century and their beautiful decorative arts, discuss styles and inspirations! Impress them with your exquisite taste. Not to mention when you are not entertaining it would be a lovely accent to your relaxing room.

The 18th century conversation piece. What would you have in your living room??

My 18th century conversation piece!

Who doesn't love a nice piece for the kitchen? Remember when we talked about taking chocolate in bed for breakfast and how yummy it is to be so fashionable? Well let me introduce the pot your chocolate would have been served from!

This lovely piece was owned by Maria Leczinska. It is silver-gilt and part of an 18 piece set which features her arms. The set is special because it was a gift from Louis XV! He chose to gift the Queen with a lovely set of china after she gave birth to the Dauphin.

He was obviously thoughtful in his choice! The detailed feel of the pot and the spout are little dolphins, (the french is dauphin.) The fancy feet and spout show how rococo design could morph into practical everyday objects, creating an object of fabulous craftsmanship and style. Anyone for chocolat?