Press release -
Rare Louis XV Bureau en Pente up for Auction in June 2016
Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers in Copenhagen presents an elegant Louis XV Bureau en Pente from c. 1750 at the international auction this summer. The bureau is attributed to the renowned French cabinetmaker Jacques Dubois (1694-1763), who created exquisite furniture for the royal court.
The French Louis XV writing desk, also known as a Bureau en Pente, is of an exceptionally fine quality. It is decorated with Japanese lacquer and "vernis Martin", which is a type of lacquerwork on older furniture that the brothers Guillaume and Etienne-Simon Martin introduced in the 1700s. Ease and elegance are characteristics of Louis XV furniture, which is reflected in the curved cabriole legs and the richly detailed decorations in the lacquerwork and the gilded bronze fittings.
The Cabinetmaker Jacques Dubois
Jacques Dubois was a master cabinetmaker of the 18th century. He was born in Pontoise on 7 april, 1694 and died in 1763. He was not only cabinetmaker to King Louis XV, he also worked for the King’s daughter, princess Louise Élisabeth, Duchess of Parma, as well as the Duke of Orleans and several nobilities of the time.
Dubois probably learned the craft in the workshop of his half-brother, Nöel Gérard, an important cabinetmaker and dealer of the 1720s and 1730s. Dubois did not become a master until relatively late in his career, at the age of forty-eight. The inventory made after his death reveals a large workshop with a varied range of production including secrétaires, writing desks, pedestals, and clocks, decorated with floral marquetry or with Chinese or Japanese lacquer.
Lacquered Furniture
Dubois fully mastered the Louis XV-style of exclusive furniture pieces. He was a specialist in varnishes and lacquers, where he often reused furniture elements from the Far East. Especially Chinese and Japanese lacquers were very popular during the 18th century. The Marchands-Merciers (dealers) of the time would import chests and screens from the Far East. Instead of selling them, they had the idea of breaking them up in order to use the lacquer panels in Western furniture.
The dealers would supply the lacquer panels to the cabinetmakers, who then had the task of mounting them on pieces of furniture. Dubois appears to have worked regularly for the Marchands-Merciers, producing several pieces of furniture with lacquer veneers in very high quality. For that purpose he also produced delicately made bronze fittings, which he applied to the furniture in order to create a beautiful coherence between the different elements. This can also be seen in the piece that is up for auction.
International Auction
The French “Bureau en Pente” will be up for auction at Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers of Fine Art, Bredgade 33 in Copenhagen this summer.
Preview: 26-30 June
Auction: 1-2 June
Press photo
Jacques Dubois, attributed: A Louis XV gilt bronze mounted, Japanese laquer and vernis Martin Bureau en Pente. C. 1750. H. 91.5 cm. W. 85 cm. D. 45 cm. Estimate: DKK 400,000-600,000 / € 53,500-80,500
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Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers is one of Scandinavia’s leading international auction houses, and one of Denmark’s oldest. It all started on 6 October 1948, when Arne Bruun Rasmussen conducted the first traditional auction in the saleroom at Bredgade 33 in Copenhagen. Today, Jesper Bruun Rasmussen stands at the helm of the family-run business together with the third generation of the family, his son Frederik and daughter Alexa, and the company’s CEO Jakob Dupont.
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