Description
Pair Of Candelabras From The Louis XVI Period Attributed To The Bronzier Francois Remond
Probably produced under the direction of Dominique Daguerre.
Circa 1780.
Height: 100cm
Louis XVI candelabra in patinated bronze and gilded with matte gold and burnished gold on a tapered base in gray Bardiglio marble.
Depicting two female figures skillfully wearing a bun and dressed in an antique pleated drape.
Each supports a five-light bouquet emanating from a fluted cornucopia from which spring finely chiseled and golden fruits and flowers.
The sconces are decorated with rolled branches dotted with stylized foliage.
The counter-base is decorated with fluted spirals.
In the center of each bouquet is a blooming flower.
The cartridges on the base represent putti playing around an Athenian woman.
The composition is most certainly inspired by the work of the sculptor Etienne-Maurice Falconet (1716-1791).
We find, in fact, a drawing made by Gabriel de St aubin in his booklet of the Salon of 1761. (OTTOMEYER and P. Proschel, Vergoldete Bronze, pg 254)
as well as a model of a torchiere executed by the sculptor for the Palace of Versailles (reproduced in Le Dix-ième siècle français, Collectionconnaissance des Arts, Paris, 1956, p.150).
Francois Rémond (c. 1747 -. 1812)
Is a French master engraver and gilder who achieved fame in his time.
He began his apprenticeship in 1763. In 1774 he became a master in the guild of bronze gilders. He was a prolific worker and was considered one of the best bronze gilders and sculptors of his time. His work and skill were in demand. He has carried out numerous commissions for the famous haberdasher Dominique Daguerre
He created works in the Turkish style then in vogue for Louis XVI and his family
Rémond made urns, andirons and candelabra. He worked with the engraver Pierre Gouthière on some of his greatest works before 1788. Rémond and Gouthière were known for their ability to create matte and burnished gilding. They made elaborate ormolu mounts for mantel clocks, furniture, or statues that incorporated creatures from mythology or rare species like camels and ostriches. Rémond also produced ornaments for watchmakers and cabinetmakers. He designed bronze ornamentations for the furniture maker Jean-Henri Riesener (1734-1806)
From a generation later than Gouthière, to whom these candelabra were traditionally attributed, François Rémond succeeded him as the most important bronzier of his time. Born in 1747, he completed his apprenticeship in 1763 with the bronzier Vial before being received master gilder as an apprentice and by masterpiece on December 14, 1774. Christian Baulez underlines that to his activity as a gilder-chaser, Rémond quickly adds that of foundry and is able to deliver completely finished works, thus giving him access to the royal clientele, the queen of course, but also the count of Artois and the dukes of Orléans and Penthièvre.
Having taken luxury « à la française » to its peak, Daguerre, visionary and extraordinary businessman, settled in England around the beginning of the 1780s and joined forces with Martin-Eloi Lignereux, who remained in charge from the Parisian store. In London, patronized by the Prince Regent, future King George IV, Daguerre took an active part in the fitting out and decoration of Carlton House and the Brighton Pavilion, making his network of Parisian craftsmen, most of whom furniture, seats, fireplaces, bronze furnishings and works of art and invoicing, for the year 1787 alone, more than £14,500 worth of supplies. Impressed by the merchant’s talent, some great English aristocrats also called on his services, particularly Count Spencer for Althorp, where Daguerre collaborated with the architect Henry Holland (1745-1806). In Paris, he continued, through his partner Lignereux, to work for great amateurs and delivered superb pieces of cabinetmaking to the Garde-Meuble de la Couronne intended for the apartments of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. Probably very affected by the revolutionary troubles and the disappearance of many of his most important clients, he definitively retired from business in 1793.