Great Louis 14th style in architecture. Glamorous interior style of Louis XIV. Armchair and table Louis XV style, Silvano Grifoni, WWTS

In the second half of the 17th century, France became the leading European power. I urgently had to catch up and overtake Italy, including in terms of tastes and fashion.

On this occasion, under Louis XIV (1643–1715), a special department was even instituted, in charge of all types of art, headed by the painter Charles Lebrun. And then it began...

In the palace interiors of that period, full grand splendor reigned. The newly invented style was supposed to glorify the power of the monarch. The task was solved simply: more massiveness, carving and gilding. The ornament is strictly symmetrical. Acanthus leaves, fruits, shells, masks and heads of favs. new combined in it with military symbols. The motifs inspired by ancient Rome (helmets and shields) were supplemented with signs of the “sun king”: a radiant face or two intertwined letters L. The craftsmen generously inlaid furniture with ebony, copper, tin, tortoiseshell and mother-of-pearl. The most famous works in this technique were created by the cabinetmaker André-Charles Boulle, which is why the style is sometimes called simply "Boulle". A noteworthy detail: the legs of chairs and stools are connected by transverse crossbars that form the letter H or, later, X. The backs of the chairs are decorously high, and the low seats are decorated with fringe. In the same period, spread comfortable furniture With drawers. This is a chest of drawers that abolished chests, as well as a bureau. Another invention of the era is the side table-console. The top of console tables is often made of marble or inlaid with Florentine mosaics, supported by allegorical figures. (Such consoles can be found in the foyers of many luxury hotels, as well as in houses where it is customary to hold receptions.) A sofa appears, which looks like several armchairs put together. However, towards the end of the period, the interiors lose their pomposity and acquire grace, foreshadowing the subsequent styles of the Regency and Louis XV.

The chest of drawers seems to be entirely made of marquetry, bronze and gilding. Antique Salon Segoura, Paris	Desk antique gallery Kraemer, Paris
	Console, 17th century. From the collection of the antique salon Perrin, Paris
	Baroque is the most radical of the styles opposite to minimalism. This oil is oil. When and marquetry, and bronze lining, and gilding, and marble, and sculpture. The sheer size of the closet is amazing. The sheer volume of work is amazing. But what attracts the eye most of all is the muscularity of the Atlanteans and the expressiveness of their postures. Like they're about to break. Second half of the 17th century, France

A characteristic feature of the style: marquetry decorates the surface of the furniture so richly that it becomes like painting. The motives are very diverse: from floral and floral to military, Greco-Roman. The massive, quadrangular legs of the cabinet, apparently, seemed to the master not elegant enough, so he substituted a pair of courtly legs made of gilded bronze in front.

	Furniture is covered with velvet (mostly dark red "royal" color), tapestry and silk. Patterns prefer floral, colors are contrasting and bright. Copy fabrics are made by Prelle
Chest of drawers with patterned marquetry, sculpted carvings and gold-plated metal fittings. Produced by SMT	Casket, silver, silver plated. Paris, 1704-1712. From the collection of De Leye, Brussels
In the early years of the reign of Louis XIV, the nobles sat in armchairs reminiscent of the era of the predecessor king, but in the new interior context they looked fresh. Below Armchair, made by Angelo Cappellini	Console (with marble top) Louis XIV style. Exclude. a thing of beauty. An exact copy of the palace, produced by Provasi

The interior in the style of Louis XIV arose during his reign 1643-1715. To better imagine this style, you need to plunge into the history of that time. However, history is not able to describe the emotional state of society in 1643, so it is better to turn to fiction, where the author, as a subtle psychologist, will show the most inconspicuous corners of the soul of Louis XIV and the people around him. The question may, of course, arise as to how the style of the interior is related to emotional state. But everything is simple, the interior reflects the character of a person.

The most skillful author who majestically paints a picture of the life of Louis XIV is Alexandre Dumas in his novel The Vicomte de Bragelon, or Ten Years Later, the third part of the trilogy of the novel about the three musketeers and d'Artagnan. It describes the beginning of the reign of Louis XIV. The 25-year-old king is handsome, amorous, energetic. Like any ruler, he sincerely loves compliments, in some cases even flattery, loves the environment of eloquent people who can paint in their imagination a real picture with the smallest details with the help of words. The society insisted that Louis XIV is like the sun of all France. Artists, sculptors, decorators, seeing in their king, on the one hand, a powerful ruler, and on the other, an amorous young man, convey his character through works of art, as well as the decoration of his home. So the artist Charles Lebrun introduces marble with variegated colors into the decoration, combined with gilded bronze, reliefs, ceiling painting. The main decoration of the premises were heavy frames, stucco on the walls, which can still be seen in the Palace of Versailles, including in the Hall of War and Peace.

"Great style", as the style of Louis XIV is also called, is based on where elements are present. This is due to the fact that the king is compared to Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great. Also, "Big style" includes elements. First of all, these are the paintings by Jean Leport, which decorated the walls of houses. Usually the paintings were written in human growth.

Palace furniture contained a lot of carvings covered with gilding. Items were made of colored wood, which was decorated with various precious materials. Later, the tree began to be replaced with gilded bronze, silver, brass, and tin. The legs of chairs and chairs had a sophisticated S-shape. Furniture elements were sheathed in rich fabrics with organic patterns. Cabinet furniture also appears in the form of wall consoles, chests of drawers with curved legs.

The interior was decorated with tapestries, carpets, silk fabrics that covered the walls and ceilings, and various silver items.

Under Louis XIV, they first appeared. These were large ceiling lamps that burned with candles. In their rays, the crystal shimmered with all the colors of the rainbow. The sight was breathtaking.

Such a rich, luxurious interior existed before late XVII century, and later, due to the economic deterioration of the country, the interior began to acquire more features of classicism.

The emergence of style

big style- (French "Grand maniere", Le style Louis Quatorze) - the artistic style of one of the brightest periods in the history of France, the "golden age" of French art in the second half of the 17th century.
Associated with the years of the reign of King Louis XIV (1643-1715), hence the name. This style combined elements of Classicism and Baroque. With its figurative structure, the “Grand Style” expressed the ideas of the triumph of strong, absolute royal power, national unity, wealth and prosperity, hence its epithet Le Grand.

In 1643, the five-year-old heir to the throne, Louis XIV, became head of France, and his mother, Queen Anne of Austria, became regent. The policy was determined by the first minister, the all-powerful Cardinal Mazarin. Despite the hatred of the people for the Italian cardinal and dislike for the “Austrian queen”, the idea of ​​the need for strong absolute power as an indispensable condition for the development of the French nation and the unification of the country rallied around the throne the advanced minds of that time - politicians, nobility, writers and artists. In 1655, the young king at a meeting of parliament uttered the famous phrase: "L" Etat, c "est moi!" ("The State, it's me!"). And the courtiers, not without flattery, of course, nicknamed him "Roi Soleil" - "King Sun" (which always shines over France). Finance Minister of the "Sun King" J.-B. Colbert "supervised" the development of architecture, the activities of the Academies. In 1663, Colbert organized the "Academy of Inscriptions", specifically for writing inscriptions for monuments and medals glorifying the king. Art was declared a state affair. Artists were given direct instructions to glorify unlimited royal power, regardless of means.

The new ideals of absolutism were supposed to reflect the "Great Style". They could only be Classicism associated with the greatness of the ancient Greeks and Romans: the French king was compared to Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great. But strict and rational Classicism did not seem pompous enough to express the triumph of absolute monarchy. In Italy at that time style dominated Baroque. Therefore, it is natural that the artists of France turned to the forms of modern Italian Baroque. But in France, the Baroque could not grow as powerfully as in Italy from the architecture of Classicism.
Since the era French Renaissance 16th century in this country, the ideals of Classicism were established, the influence of which on the development of art did not weaken until the end of the 19th century. This is what main feature « french style". In addition, the classic forms took root on a basis other than in Italy, on the basis of strong national traditions of Romanesque and Gothic art. This explains why only certain elements were borrowed from the Italian Baroque, and the ideas of Classicism remained the main formative principles of the art of the era of Louis XIV. So, in the design of the facades of buildings, a strict classicist order design of the wall was preserved, but baroque elements were present in the details of interior design, tapestries, and furniture.
The influence of state ideology was so great that it was from that time on that certain stages in the development of art in France began to be designated by the names of kings: the style of Louis XIV, the style of Louis XV, the style of Louis XVI. The custom of such a name was later turned back, to the time before the reign of Louis XIV. Another important feature of the era was that it was in France in the second half of the 17th century that the very concept of artistic style was formed. Prior to that, in Italy, the ideas of Classicism, just starting to take shape, were immediately pushed aside by Mannerism and Baroque.

Classicism as an artistic trend took shape in France, and since then, not Rome, but Paris began to dictate fashion in art, and its role did not weaken over the subsequent 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. For the first time in history, in France of the era of Louis XIV, style began to be recognized as the most important category of art, aesthetics, became the norm of life, life and customs, penetrating all aspects of court etiquette (a word that also appeared at the court of Louis XIV). Along with the awareness of style comes the aestheticization of individual formal elements, the cultivation of taste, the “sense of detail”. This feature has become a tradition that has created over several decades a special “sense of form”, a plastic culture, a subtlety of thinking inherent in the French school. But this culture was not easy to develop. Initially, the Renaissance ideal of a holistic, static, self-balanced form (somewhat shattered by the art of Mannerism and Baroque) was replaced by the idea of ​​aestheticizing “random charms” and individual means of achieving beauty: line, paint, material texture. Instead of the category of composition (compositio), put forward by the Italian architect and theorist L. B. Alberti, the concept of “mixed connection” (lat. mixtum compositura) is introduced. The beginning of such fragmentation was laid by the Italian mannerist artists who worked at the court of Francis I, and then Henry II at the Fontainebleau school. Their French students, who worked in the count and royal castles along the river. The Loire and in Paris itself, gradually formed an aristocratic culture of form, which later shone in the Rococo style of the 18th century, but it brought its first fruits in the 17th century. “Perhaps the influence of French art on the life of the upper strata of European society, including Russian society, was stronger in the 18th century, but the foundations of the supremacy of the French language, manners, fashion, and pleasures were undoubtedly laid by the time of the Sun King.

It is no coincidence that the second half of the 17th century is called "the most brilliant period of French history." The most common words often repeated in memoirs and aesthetic treatises of that time are: great, majesty, luxurious, festive... Probably, the splendor of the style of court art really created the impression of an "eternal celebration of life." According to the famous memoirist Madame de Sevigne, the court of Louis XIV was all the time “in a state of pleasure and art” ... The king “always listens to some music, very pleasant. He talks with ladies who are accustomed to this honor ... The festivities continue every day and midnight. In the "brilliant seventeenth century" style, etiquette, manner became a real mania. Hence the fashion for mirrors and memoirs. People wanted to see themselves from the outside, to become spectators of their own poses. The flourishing of the art of the court portrait was not long in coming. The luxury of palace receptions amazed the envoys of European courts.

In the Grand Gallery of the Palace of Versailles, thousands of candles were lit, reflected in the mirrors, and on the dresses of the court ladies there were "so many jewels and gold that they could hardly walk." None of the European states dared to compete with France, which was then at the zenith of glory. "Big style" appeared at the right time and in the right place. He accurately reflected the content of the era - but not its actual state, but the mood of the minds. The king himself had little interest in art, he waged inglorious wars that exhausted the forces of the state. And people seemed to be trying not to notice this, they wanted to look like they seemed to themselves in their imagination. What arrogance! When studying this era, one gets the feeling that its greatest artists were tailors and hairdressers. But history eventually put everything in its place, preserving for us the great works of architects, sculptors, draftsmen and engravers. The mania for style, the French "great manner" was rapidly spreading across Europe, overcoming diplomatic and state barriers. The power of art turned out to be stronger than weapons, and Berlin, Vienna, and even stiff London capitulated to it.

Lush "Louis XIV style" in the interior

The interiors of the time of Louis XIV acquire, in contrast to the external appearance of the buildings of this time, an extremely magnificent, solemn-ceremonial character. Fulfilling their social and historical role, they served as a rich, magnificent and at the same time monumental backdrop for the ceremonies and rituals of the court life of that time. France during this period was the most powerful state in Europe. The artistic dictator of the time, the court painter Charles Lebrun, sought to increase the major sound interior decoration, introducing polychrome marbles into the decoration in combination with gilded bronze, reliefs, and outwardly spectacular plafond painting. Order elements were used in the interiors, mainly pilasters, semi-columns, but the main attention was paid not to the accuracy of their proportions, but rather to the decoration - lining with colored marbles. The main role in the decoration of the premises was played by heavy frames and architectural and plastic details, which framed and decorated individual sections of the walls, cornices, were placed in the form of desudeports above the doors, on the ceiling. Examples are the decoration of the Palace of Versailles, including the halls of War and Peace.

The leading role in determining the style of decorative art of this time, as noted, belonged to Charles Le Brun, in the development of samples in the first period of the heyday of the Baroque - to the artist Jean Lepotre.

The palace furniture of the Louis XIV style was distinguished by the richness and oversaturation of the design, especially the carving, which was richly covered with gilding. In addition to furniture with carved processing, furniture comes into fashion. "bull style", later named after the court blacksmith Andre Charles Bull (1642 - 1732). In the presence of a fairly simple structure, objects were created from colored, mainly ebony, they were decorated in abundance with the help of orozon frames filled with tortoiseshell inserts, mother-of-pearl and other materials, rods, rosettes and other details. The compositional basis was made up of panels with the introduction of human figures framed by the twists of the ornament. Bull's furniture, rich and refined, at the same time produced a feeling of a certain dryness of forms.

Since the 1680s, furniture made in this style has acquired a special sophistication in decoration, due to the displacement wooden parts shiny metal - gilded bronze. Silver, brass, tin were also used in decoration.

Armchairs, chairs, and sofas that are becoming widespread at this time have S-shaped or pyramidal, tapering down legs. The shape of the armrests is also becoming more complicated. The upholstered seat, high back and partially armrests are covered with various elegant tapestry fabrics with images of trees, flowers, birds and ornamental curls. The types of chairs are becoming more diverse, in particular, there are chairs with two side semicircular ledges at the back at head level - especially for the elderly. On the basis of the combination of three interconnected armchairs with armrests missing from the central chair, sofas arise. The frames of their backs acquire soft wavy outlines.

At this time, cabinet furniture became more widespread: tables of various shapes, wall consoles, most often on bent legs, chests of drawers that replaced chests-cassettes for storing linen. Rich carvings and gilded bronze details are widely used in decoration. The furniture of this time, heavy and monumental, acquires a great compositional diversity both in general and in individual elements.

The applied art of the middle and second half of the 17th century, as noted above, was of great importance for interior decoration. The rooms were decorated with espaliers, savoneri pile carpets laid on the floor, silk fabrics, draperies and tablecloths, silverware, which over time became more widespread and important.

Since the end of the 17th century, due to the deterioration of the economic situation of the country, including the royal court, caused by failures of a military and political nature, the ultimate luxury of decoration, observed at the court of Louis XIV, gives way to relative restraint. The elements of classicism are intensified in the interiors.

(from the French "Grand maniere", Le style Louis Quatorze)

The artistic style of one of the brightest periods in the history of France, the "golden age" of French art in the second half of the 17th century. Associated with the years of the reign of King Louis XIV (1643-1715), hence the name. This style combined elements of classicism and. With its figurative structure, the “Grand Style” expressed the ideas of the triumph of strong, absolute royal power, national unity, wealth and prosperity, hence its epithet “Le Grand”.

In 1643, the five-year-old heir to the throne, Louis XIV, became head of France, and his mother, Queen Anne of Austria, became regent. The policy was determined by the first minister, the all-powerful Cardinal Mazarin. Despite the hatred of the people for the Italian cardinal and dislike for the “Austrian queen”, the idea of ​​the need for strong absolute power as an indispensable condition for the development of the French nation and the unification of the country rallied around the throne the advanced minds of that time - politicians, nobility, writers and artists. In 1655, the young king at a meeting of parliament uttered the famous phrase: "L" Etat, c "est moi!" ("The State, it's me!"). And the courtiers, not without flattery, of course, nicknamed him "Roi Soleil" - "King Sun" (which always shines over France). The new ideals of absolutism were supposed to reflect the "Great Style".

It is no coincidence that the second half of the 17th century is called "the most brilliant period of French history." The most common words often repeated in memoirs and aesthetic treatises of that time are: great, majesty, luxurious, festive... Probably, the splendor of the style of court art really created the impression of an "eternal celebration of life." In the "brilliant seventeenth century" style, etiquette, manner became a real mania. Hence the fashion for mirrors and memoirs. People wanted to see themselves from the outside, to become spectators of their own poses. The flourishing of the art of the court portrait was not long in coming. The luxury of palace receptions amazed the envoys of European courts.

The “Louis XIV style” laid the foundations for an international European court culture and ensured, with its triumph, the successful dissemination of the ideas of classicism and artistic neoclassical style in the second half of the XVIII - early XIX V. in most European countries. Another important feature of the era of the "Grand Style" is that it was at this time that the ideology and forms of European academicism were finally taking shape. In 1648, on the initiative of the "first painter of the king" Lebrun, the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture was founded in Paris. In 1666, a French Academy painting. In 1671, the Royal Academy of Architecture was organized in Paris. F. Blondel the Elder was appointed its director, A. Felibien was its secretary. "Big style" required a lot of money. The royal court, the court aristocracy, the Academies and the Catholic Church managed to create an environment, even within the radius of the capital, in which expensive masterpieces arose. First of all, the construction of grandiose architectural ensembles was required. The official positions of "architect of the king" and "first architect of the king" were introduced. In the palace interiors of that period, full grand splendor reigned. The newly invented style was supposed to glorify the power of the monarch. The task was solved simply: more massiveness, carving and gilding. The ornament is strictly symmetrical. Acanthus leaves, fruits, shells, masks and heads of fauns were combined in it with military symbols. The motifs inspired by ancient Rome (helmets and shields) were supplemented with signs of the "sun king": a radiant face or two intertwined letters L. The craftsmen generously inlaid furniture with ebony, copper, tin, tortoiseshell and mother-of-pearl. The most famous works in this technique were created by the cabinetmaker André-Charles Boulle, which is why the style is sometimes called simply "Boulle".

During the reign of Louis XIV, the architect and fortifier S. de Vauban became famous, he built over thirty new fortress cities and reconstructed many old ones. L. Levo became the author of two outstanding buildings that had a noticeable influence on the development of the architecture of European classicism: the Hotel Lambert (1645) and the ensemble of the College of the Four Nations (Institut de France; 1661-1665). Next to the "College de France" in 1635-1642, the architect J. Lemercier built the Sorbonne church with a facade in the Italian Baroque style (it contains the tomb of Cardinal Richelieu, rector of the university). Like the College de France chapel, the Sorbonne church is crowned with an unusual “French dome” for that time.

An outstanding decorator of the "Grand Style", who also anticipated the Rococo style, was J. Veren the Elder. He designed court festivities, productions of operas by J.-B. Lully, a composer of the "Versailles style", made drawings of furniture, interior design and ship decor. The initiatives of King Louis XIV contributed to the formation of the art collection of the Louvre. In 1662, by order of the Minister J.-B. Colbert, from a simple workshop of wool dyers in the suburbs of Paris, was created the "Royal Furniture Manufactory", or the Tapestry Manufactory. Not only woven carpets - tapestries, but also furniture, mosaics, bronze products were produced there. At the turn of the XVII-XVIII century. French art, according to the impressions of contemporaries, created a feeling of "unbridled luxury and splendor." Koryverdyur and huge "picture" tapestries with lush borders - garlands of flowers and fruits, emblems and cartouches, with woven shimmering gold and silver threads, occupied all the walls. They not only corresponded to the character of the interiors of the "Grand Style", but set the tone for them.