Fire screen (écran)

Art Historical Context

This elegant fire screen, or *écran*, was created around 1786 in Paris during the final years of the French monarchy. Crafted by celebrated menuisier Georges Jacob in collaboration with textile designer Philippe de Lasalle, it exemplifies the refined taste of late-eighteenth-century French interiors. Fire screens served both practical and decorative purposes, shielding sitters from the direct heat of a fireplace while adding sculptural beauty to a room. The carved, gilded, and silvered beech frame showcases Jacob’s masterful woodworking, its delicate neoclassical lines reflecting the period’s shift toward lighter, more graceful forms. The central panel features an 18th-century silk brocade, not original to the frame yet perfectly in keeping with its era. Woven with lively bird motifs, the fabric highlights the extraordinary skill of Lyon’s silk industry, where de Lasalle was renowned for his naturalistic designs. The combination of shimmering metallic threads and vibrant avian imagery brings a sense of movement and luxury to the piece, transforming a functional object into a small work of art. Today housed in the Metropolitan Museum’s Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts, this screen offers visitors a vivid glimpse into the refined domestic world of pre-Revolutionary France. Its harmonious blend of carving, gilding, and sumptuous textile speaks to the period’s celebration of craftsmanship and nature.

About the Artist

Philippe de Lasalle|Georges Jacob · 1723–1804

Philippe de Lasalle (1723–1804) was born on September 2 in the small town of Seyssel in the Ain department of France, the son of a local finance official. Orphaned at just one year old, he was raised by relatives and moved to Lyon at age fourteen to live with an uncle. There, he began his artistic training as an apprentice to the painter Daniel Sarrabat, a prominent Lyonnais figure known for instr...