Carlton Hobbs has been honored to present an exceptional piece of art furniture made by the eminent conservator and ébéniste, Yannick Chastang. It is the first time Carlton Hobbs has marketed a piece by a contemporary designer, and we feel this cabinet is relevant to our collection as it embodies the artistry and quality of the Golden Age of cabinetmaking, whose final flourishing was the Art Deco period of the 1920s and 30s.
Although small pockets of high quality production still exist, this cabinet, in its conception, has an exceptional understanding of subtlety and restraint, redolent of late 18th century French design. The quality is undoubtedly informed by Mr. Chastang’s years of working on the greatest examples of 18th century Gallic pieces. Read more... (634 words, 4 images, estimated 2:32 mins reading time)
This George I mahogany maritime bureau cabinet is an extremely rare and special early 18th century commission, due to its unusual form and special characteristics in type of wood and method of manufacture. Uniquely, the cabinet is entirely constructed of imported mahogany from Jamaica, Puerto Rico and Cuba, including the interior pigeonholes and drawer linings, which are otherwise usually made of oak. The use of shoot bolts on the shutter doors are also a feature of great rarity.
The interior is fitted with pigeonholes for substantial mercantile correspondence.
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Nostell Priory. © The National Trust 2003-05
Nostell Priory is a Palladian house in Nostell, West Yorkshire, built on the site of a medieval priory. The estate was purchased by the Winn family in the 1650’s and that family has lived there ever since construction began on the present building in 1733, to a design based on Palladio’s Villa Mocenigo. The house retains extensive work by the celebrated architects and designers James Paine and Robert Adam, with decorative painting by A. Zucchi and a collection of furniture by Thomas Chippendale.
The Nostell Priory breakfront side cabinets designed by Thomas Ward. Carlton Hobbs LLC.
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Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Jean François Hache represents the fourth generation in a family of famed cabinetmakers from Grenoble, France, who worked throughout the end of the 17th century and the entirety of the 18th century. The dynasty began with Noël Hache (1630-1675), the son of a master baker who chose not to enter the family business, but rather studied veneering in the workshop of a Calais master. This northern region of France was directly influenced by the marquetry of Belgium and The Netherlands. Eventually, Noël set up his own workshop in Toulouse and, upon his death, it was taken over by his son Thomas. Thomas Hache then moved the atêlier to Grenoble. His only son, Pierre, worked with him as did his grandson, Jean-François. Read more... (387 words, 3 images, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)
