Designs for the painted decoration of ceiling timbers monogrammed "PB"
second half 19th century
Medium
pen and ink, watercolor, and gold paint on wove paper
Dimensions
sheet: 10 7/8 x 8 7/8 in. (27.7 x 22.6 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Dodge Fund, 1967
Accession Number
67.827.207
Art Historical Context
In the lavish world of 19th-century French interior design, this delicate drawing by Jules-Edmond- Lachaise and Eug-Pierre Gourdet captures the of architectural embellishment. Titled *Designs for the Painted of Ceiling Timbers*, monogrammed "PB"—likely the initials of a patron—this preparatory sketch from the second half of century outlines ornate patterns for timbered ceilings. Such designs were essential for opulent homes and public spaces, blending functionality with grandeur during an era of historicist revival, where architects and decorators drew inspiration from Renaissance and Baroque ...
About the Artist
Jules-Edmond-Charles Lachaise|Eugène-Pierre Gourdet · 1897–1897
Jules-Edmond-Charles Lachaise, born Jules Lachaise on September 2, 1836, in Paris, emerged as a prominent French painter and draughtsman specializing in lavish interior decorations during the Second Empire and beyond. Little is known about his early life and formal training, though he married Berthe Gourdet in 1866, forging a close professional partnership with her brother, the decorator Eugène-Pi...