Style Napoleon III / Ref.11611

Henri-Auguste FOURDINOIS (1830-1907) - Pair of vitrines cabinets with caryatids

Stamp "H. FOURDINOIS" under the two Carrara marble top shelf.
Realized as a true "chef-d'oeuvre", this pair of vitrines cabinets bears the signature of a great Parisian cabinetmaker of the second half of the 19th century, Henri Auguste Fourdinois.
Resting on fluted toupie feet, these vitrines display straight lines inspired by the Louis XVI style, although counterbalanced by curved sides. A large central glass door is framed by two gilt bronze caryatids carrying a basket of flowers on their heads. The gilded bronze decorations of these cabinets are of a very high quality, especially in the work of caryatids. The excellence of carving and gilding attest to a virtuoso work.
The marquetry work contributes to the beauty of these vitrines : walnut, cherry, blackened pear, sycamore are worked in veneer to give movement and symmetry to this pieces of furniture.
The tops of these cabinets are provided with shelves in Carrara White marble slightly veined.
The straight lines from the Louis XVI style, the toupies feet from the Louis XIV style, the caryatids from the Neo-Renaissance style ... All the ornamentation of these pieces of furniture helps to highlight, in a brilliant illustration, an ornamental vocabulary demonstrating the knowledge of Henri-Auguste Fourdinois for the works of the past, that he knows how to renew in creations of a dazzling stylistic syncretism and an extraordinary quality of execution.

Born in Paris in 1830, Henri-Auguste Fourdinois trained at Félix Duban's workshop, before working in London as a model draftsman for goldsmith Jean-Valentin Morel, then in Paris with bronzier Victor Paillard. From his time with Felix Duban, he retains a great sense of composition, giving a very architectural form to his furniture. In 1867 he succeeded his father, who had taught him woodworking and the pursuit of excellence, at the head of the family company. His realizations are welcomed very favorably by the critics of the time, who emphasize the delicacy, the perfection of details and the beauty of the ornaments. The sales catalog of 1887, at the time of the closing of the company, thus greets an artist "who has participated in many exhibitions, harvesting everywhere the high rewards, collecting on all sides of inappreciable votes, furnishing of pure masterpieces the museums, the royal residences and the aristocratic hotels of Europe and the New World ".

These vitrines form a set with the Bureau plat reference 11614.