A Charles X elm burl, amaranth, maple veneered and brass three-leaf folding screen, circa 1822–1825, by Louasse Jeune

Related literature :

Chefs-d’œuvre des grands ébénistes 1790-1850 : de G. Jacob à Giroux, exh cat. Paris, Musée des arts décoratifs, Pavillon de Marsan, 1951, n.145 for an identival model.

D. Ledoux-Lebard, Le mobilier français du XIXe siècle (1795-1889). Dictionnaire des ébénistes, Paris, 1989, p. 445 (ill.).

This three-leaf screen, veneered with burr elm, perfectly illustrates the work of Parisian cabinetmakers during the reign of Charles X, a period marked by a craze for light woods and exotic timbers. This widely popular aesthetic owes much to the large orders placed by the Duchess of Berry for her apartments in the Pavillon de Marsan at the Tuileries, as well as for her château in Rosny.

In keeping with the style of small, refined furniture then in vogue, this screen bears the signature of the young cabinetmaker Louasse, who had his workshop on Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Antoine. Listed as a ‘manufacturer of furniture in native woods and other materials’, he is noted for his varied production, including commodes, secrétaires, cabinets, occasional tables, jardinières and dressing tables, made ‘in the latest style’, according to the Bazar Parisien of 1826.

This screen appears to be the counterpart of the one exhibited in 1951 at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, during the exhibition Chefs-d’œuvre des grands ébénistes 1790-1850 : de G. Jacob à Giroux (cat. no. 145), confirming its importance in the history of early 19th-century French furniture. The piece on display was then part of Hubert de Givenchy's collection and was later sold at the Hubert de Givenchy - Collectionneur : Hôtel d'Orrouer I-II et Manoir du Jonchet auction at Christie's, Paris, 15-17 June 2022, lot 426. Denise Ledoux-Lebard indicates in her book that these two screens, which form a pair, were part of Madame de Castille's collection.