Page from a Scrapbook containing Drawings and Several Prints of Architecture, Interiors, Furniture and Other Objects
ca. 1800–1850
Medium
Pen and black and gray ink, graphite, black chalk
Dimensions
15 11/16 x 10 in. (39.8 x 25.4 cm)
Classification
Albums|Drawings|Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1963
Accession Number
63.535.22(a–i)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the refined world of early 19th-century French with this captivating page from a scrapbook Pierre François Léonard Fontaine Charles Percier, created around 1800–1850. These two visionary architects and decorators, close collaborators, were the masterminds behind Napoleon's opulent interiors at the Tuileries and Fontainebleau palaces. Their work defined the Empire style—a bold evolution of Neoclassicism ancient Roman grandeur with modern elegance. This album leaf brims with meticulous pen and black-and-gray ink drawings, graphite sketches, and black chalk studies, alongside several p...
About the Artist
Pierre François Léonard Fontaine|Charles Percier · 1762–1853
Pierre François Léonard Fontaine (1762–1853) was a pivotal figure in French neoclassical architecture, renowned for his masterful interiors, urban planning, and decorative designs that defined the Empire style. Born in Pontoise to architect and fountain designer Pierre Fontaine, he assisted his father on hydraulic projects at the Château de L'Isle-Adam in 1778–1779 before moving to Paris in 1779. ...