Lit à Chaire, à Precher
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-395-61
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
This print by Pierre Ranson captures the elegance of late eighteenth-century French furniture design. Created between 1779 and 1790, the work depicts a “Lit à Chaire, à Prêcher,” a specialized bed type that incorporated a small reading desk or pulpit-like structure, allowing its occupant to study or pray comfortably while reclining. Ranson, during the transition from Roc exuberance to the Neoclassical taste, produced many such designs that helped shape refined domestic interiors of the period. As a print rather than a finished piece of furniture, the work served an important practical role. P...