André Charles Boulle

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Boulle, André Charles

Born Nov. 11, 1642, in Paris; died there Feb. 29, 1732. French cabinetmaker and master at the court of Louis XIV (from 1672).

Boulle developed his own style of intarsia (a mosaic made from wood, called marquetry in France), using woods of various textures and tones and copper, bronze, tin, ivory, tortoise shell, and mother-of-pearl. With these materials Boulle created elegant, intricate patterns (primarily floral) that gave the formal shapes of royal furniture a wealth of subtle color. The furniture produced in his workrooms (where his four sons also worked) evolved from the classicism of the 17th century to the rococo. It is preserved for the most part in the Louvre (Paris), Versailles, Fontainebleau, and the Cluny Museum (Paris). A great number of imitations of Boulle’s work (the so-called Boulle style, made primarily in the 19th century) can be found throughout Europe.

REFERENCE

Verlet, P. Les Meubles français du XVIII siècle. Ebénisterie, Paris, 1956.

References in periodicals archive ?

Brock is not drawn to pieces just because they were the former possessions of any particular aristocrat or royal; he is more interested in the working methods and design inspirations of elite makers and tastemakers, such as Thomas Hope, Andre-Charles Boulle, Jean-Henri Riesener, and Nicolas Heurtaut.

Object lessons

It includes open sections so you can see how it was built, furniture by Andre-Charles Boulle, Mortlake tapestries, paintings by El Greco and Gainsborough and one of the world's most complete period armouries.

PYRAMID POWER; Out&About

It includes open sections so that you can see how it was built, furniture by Andre-Charles Boulle, Mortlake tapestries, paintings by El Greco and Gainsborough and one of the world's most complete period Armouries.

I'm Bought by pyramid power; DaysOut GRAHAM YOUNG VISITS BOUGHTON HOUSE, KETTERING, NN14 1BJ

Here, a rectangular monolithic platform, suggesting an eroded ice block, sits on three classy spiralled and conical legs, like those on a baroque table clock by Andre-Charles Boulle in the Frick Collection.

Exuberance and restraint

Whether it is paintings by Canaletto or Goya, porcelain produced at Sevres, or marquetry attributed to Andre-Charles Boulle, it can all be found at The Bowes Museum, which has received Designated status from the government in recognition of the outstanding collection.

Adding even more strings to the Bowes

One hundred examples of porcelain, furniture, silver, and bronzes by craftsmen such as Johann Joachim Kaendler and Andre-Charles Boulle are featured in this lavishly illustrated catalogue.

Off the shelf

Cabinet on Stand,'' Andre-Charles Boulle, 1675-1680.

GETTY COLLECTION HAS PERSONALITY ALL ITS OWN

Cattelain shows me photographs of a bureau plat, or writing desk, he recently acquired at auction in Zurich by Andre-Charles Boulle, one of the most important furniture makers of the 18th century (Fig.

Born to collect

Mia Jackson is a PhD student at Queen Mary, University of London, researching the collections of Andre-Charles Boulle.

French fancy: the Louvre's newly restored decorative arts galleries are triumphant

At Europ Auction's 25 September sale, meanwhile, a pair of grand ormolumounted partie and contrepartie marquetry cabinets by Andre-Charles Boulle changed hands for 2.

The art market: modern masters go under the hammer in New York this month, with exceptional offerings from the collection of Sidney and Dorothy Kohl. In October, the Biennale des Antiquaires returned to form, with a strong Asian presence

Masterpieces at Christie's' was a three-day exhibition in June that showcased the upcoming highlights of its entire London summer season, and it saw Francis Bacon and Jean-Michel Basquiat offered alongside Pieter Brueghel the Younger, Andre-Charles Boulle, Robert Adam and Rembrandt.

Market review

Once Louis XIV had pioneered the style, encouraging star craftsmen such as Andre-Charles Boulle (1642 -1732), 'all the leading people of Europe wanted a room in this style,' says M.

Collectors' focus: the market for French 18th-century furniture has declined in recent years following a shift in taste, but that could be about to change. Elaborately decorated items from this golden age are being recast as elegant showpieces in contemporary interiors