Boiserie from the Hôtel de Cabris, Grasse

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Commissioned for the new residence of Jean-Paul de Clapiers, marquis de Cabris, in Grasse, this paneling made in Paris is a pure expression of the Neoclassical style. Originally the room had five sets of double doors and an equal number of mirrors, achieving a beautiful harmony by the alternation of the carved and gilded panels with the reflective glass surfaces. The rounded corners display trophies of musical instruments suspended from bow-tied ribbons. Smoking incense burners on tripod stands, a motif derived from classical antiquity, embellish the upper door panels. The combination of dulled and burnished gilding creates a particularly lively effect.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art