MAJORELLE, Louis

Majorelle’s “N�nuphars” studio was acclaimed as one of the most attractive creations of Art Nouveau. The furniture, which has a unified tautness of line, is finished with a spare decoration of waterlily fittings. N�nuphar is the name of the Egyptian waterlily. It is an ideal fulfilment of the contemporary yearning for mysterious symbolism. Since ancient times, waterlilies have been associated with divine majesty, immortality, and religion, the symbol of everlasting nature.

If the colour tones and grain of the wood spoke largely for themselves, the ormolu mounts were carefully composed. They contrast in both material and colour with the walnut and exotic woods Majorelle used, and they became his trademark.

Majorelle’s “N�nuphars” studio was acclaimed as one of the most attractive creations of Art Nouveau. The furniture, which has a unified tautness of line, is finished with a spare decoration of waterlily fittings. N�nuphar is the name of the Egyptian waterlily. It is an ideal fulfilment of the contemporary yearning for mysterious symbolism. Since ancient times, waterlilies have been associated with divine majesty, immortality, and religion, the symbol of everlasting nature.

If the colour tones and grain of the wood spoke largely for themselves, the ormolu mounts were carefully composed. They contrast in both material and colour with the walnut and exotic woods Majorelle used, and they became his trademark.

Majorelle’s “N�nuphars” studio was acclaimed as one of the most attractive creations of Art Nouveau. The furniture, which has a unified tautness of line, is finished with a spare decoration of waterlily fittings. N�nuphar is the name of the Egyptian waterlily. It is an ideal fulfilment of the contemporary yearning for mysterious symbolism. Since ancient times, waterlilies have been associated with divine majesty, immortality, and religion, the symbol of everlasting nature.

The back and seat of the armchair are covered with embroidered and painted mauve satin enriched with a fringe, a reproduction of the original upholstery. The back which is continuous with the seat is stuffed and the satin covering is painted with leaves and stalks bearing flowers embroidered in white silk; the outer side of the back is also covered with satin.

The cabinet-maker Louis Majorelle was one of the most influential designers of the Art Nouveau movement. During the 1890s, he came under the influence of Emile Gall� at the Ecole de Nancy and began to design slender pieces of furniture - such as this armchair - ornamented with carving and marquetry, using naturalistic floral motifs and forms. Although the carving of the walnut frame on this chair is relatively simple, the design is carefully considered to give the effect of flowing, branch-like forms.

Though Majorelle considered structure and proportion more important than decorative ornament and constantly sought new forms for his furniture, he also became a highly original designer of ornament. His early work with Rococo Revival design may have been one reason for his facility in designing free-flowing, elegantly curved forms. He used plant forms as inspiration but re-interpreted them as sophisticated, semi-abstract motifs. The silk upholstery on this chair, which exactly reproduces its original cover, illustrates how he used nature as an inspiration but not directly as a model.

In the centre is a “N�nuphars” bed (1905-09, mahogany, gilded bronze), at right an “Orchids” showcase (1903-04; moulded solid mahogany, sculpted mahogany, chiselled and gilded bronze). The walnut lavabo (1898) at left is by Fran�ois-Rupert Carabin (1862-1952).

Majorelle’s “N�nuphars” studio was acclaimed as one of the most attractive creations of Art Nouveau. The furniture, which has a unified tautness of line, is finished with a spare decoration of waterlily fittings. N�nuphar is the name of the Egyptian waterlily. It is an ideal fulfilment of the contemporary yearning for mysterious symbolism. Since ancient times, waterlilies have been associated with divine majesty, immortality, and religion, the symbol of everlasting nature.

If the colour tones and grain of the wood spoke largely for themselves, the ormolu mounts were carefully composed. They contrast in both material and colour with the walnut and exotic woods Majorelle used, and they became his trademark.

The Villa Majorelle in Nancy was the home and studio of the furniture designer Louis Majorelle. It was designed and built by the architect Henri Sauvage in 1901-1902. The building is one of the first examples of the Art Nouveau architectural style in France. It served as a showcase for Majorelle’s furniture and works of contemporary decorative artists, including ceramist Alexandre Bigot and stained glass artist Jacques Gruber. The City of Nancy owns the Villa, which is now open to the public.

Majorelle designed the bedroom furniture (bed, bedside table, mirrored cabinet, dresser, table and armchair) specifically for the Villa Majorelle. It is virtually intact and unique and was never reproduced. The wood is Japanese ash or tamo and alder, and the plaques of wood are encrusted with copper and mother of pearl. The knobs of the cabinet, dresser and bedside table are made of bronze in the shape of stylized plants.

The city of Nancy purchased the bedroom furniture and placed it in the Museum of the School of Nancy. There are plans to install the original furnishings back to their original place in the house.

This tall cabinet is in solid purpleheart, and veneers of kingwood on a carcase of oak, beech and softwood, built as a single unit but showing a lower cupboard with two doors, separated by an open recess, lined with pleated red silk, from a single-doored upper cupboard, the door of this set with a panel of marquetry in several kinds of wood, both European and tropical, forming a scene of a man sailing a small boat on a river. The cabinet is set on the sides and lower front with patinated wrought-iron mounts.

The cabinet was shown at the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1900. It helped to establish Louis Majorelle as the leading maker of furniture in the fashionable Art Nouveau style. He had taken this up in about 1890, under the influence of another Nancy designer and cabinet-maker, Emile Gall� (1846-1904).

Plants and flowers inspired Majorelle’s designs, and the stylised natural forms and whiplash curves decorating this cabinet are typical of his work. The unusual form has no real historical predecessor, which helps to highlight the tree motif that grows from the base. Majorelle’s family business in Nancy made a number of closely similar cabinets, usually for well-off middle-class clients, and often as part of a suite of furniture.

In this design, Majorelle specified a variety of woods, both home-grown and imported from tropical areas. The cabinet-makers cut them with great skill to exploit the visual effects of different grains and growth patterns.

Although design centres in Belgium and Germany produced distinctive objects in the undulating Art Nouveau style, the French city of Nancy in the province of Lorraine was the most important centre of this style between 1890 and 1910. The leaders of the “School of Nancy” were Emile Gall� (1846-1904) and Louis Majorelle.

This cabinet is a fine example of the work of Majorelle’s studio. The use of marquetry on the cabinet doors and backboard is especially fine. In this technique, hundreds of pieces of exotic wood are cut to the desired shape and then fitted together to form naturalistic pictures. Here, for example, a gaggle of geese decorate the lower doors. Upon close inspection, one can distinguish Majorelle’s signature worked entirely in marquetry.

The exhibited vases are by Louis Comfort Tiffany.

The Villa Majorelle in Nancy was the home and studio of the furniture designer Louis Majorelle. It was designed and built by the architect Henri Sauvage in 1901-1902. The building is one of the first examples of the Art Nouveau architectural style in France. It served as a showcase for Majorelle’s furniture and works of contemporary decorative artists, including ceramist Alexandre Bigot and stained glass artist Jacques Gruber.

The City of Nancy owns the Villa, purchased the dining room furniture and placed it in the Museum of the School of Nancy.

This lamp was created in collaboration with the glassmaker Antonin Daum.