Description
Major new volume on the life of Pierre Gouthière, the celebrated Parisian gilder to the French kings
With contributions by Anne Forray-Carlier, Joseph Godla, Helen Jacobsen, Luisa Penalva, Anna Saratowicz-Dudyńska and Emmanuel Sarméo
Pierre Gouthière: Virtuoso Gilder at the French Court celebrates the life and exquisite work of one of the best and most famous 18th-century Parisian craftsman–artists. Pierre Gouthière (1732–1813) held the title of “chaser and gilder to the king” under Louis XV and Louis XVI but worked primarily for a refined and lavish clientele of art collectors such as the Duke of Aumont, Madame Du Barry, and the Duchess of Mazarin. He is credited with inventing a new type of gilding that left a matte finish—dorure au mat—one of the hallmarks of his work. Despite his incredible success, Gouthière was declared bankrupt in 1787 and died in poverty.
The first major study since 1912, this new volume is an invaluable resource on this consummate artist. It features new research, detailed entries and plates of more than 40 works attributed with certainty to Gouthière, and essays by leading experts who examine Gouthière’s life, career, clientele, and gilding techniques. Also included are two
appendices, a bibliography, and an index.
Author biographies
Charlotte Vignon is curator of Decorative Arts at The Frick Collection and a visiting associate professor at the Bard Graduate Center, New York.
Christian Baulez is an historian of French 18th-century decorative arts and architecture and former chief curator at the Musée de Versailles.
Anne Forray-Carlier is curator of 17th- and 18th- Century Decorative Arts at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris.
Joseph Godla is chief conservator at the Frick Collection, New York.
Helen Jacobsen is chief curator at the Wallace Collection, London.
Luisa Penalva is curator of Gold, Silver, and Jewelry Collections at the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga, Lisbon.
Anna Saratowicz-Dudyńska is curator of Silver and Bronze at the Royal Castle, Warsaw.
Emmanuel Sarméo is an independent scholar.
Table of Contents
- Director’s Foreword
- Acknowledgments
- Note to the Reader
- Pierre Gouthière: A Gilded Legend by Charlotte Vignon
- The Life and Work of Pierre Gouthière by Christian Baulez
- Gouthière’s Network of Architects and Designers by Anne Forray-Carlier
- Gouthière’s Network of Craftsmen by Christian Baulez
- “Twenty Fingers on Each Hand”: Pierre Gouthière’s Chasing and Gilding Techniques by Joseph Godla
- Gouthière’s Legacy: Nineteenth-Century Collectors in Britain by Helen Jacobsen
- Catalogue Raisonné
Silver Gilt
Vases, Incense Burners, Ewers, and Pots-Pourris
Clocks
Light Fixtures
Firedogs
Architectural Elements
Chimneypieces
Tables
Furniture Mounts
Columns and Pedestals - Catalogue Notes
- Appendix 1
- Appendix 2
- Bibliography
- Photography Credits
- Index