Getty Museum

Pair of Commodes

Date

about 1745

Medium

Gessoed and carved, painted, and gilded pine; gilt bronze mounts; jaune rose de Brignoles marble top

Culture

German

Department

Decorative Arts

Institution

Getty Museum

The engravings of François de Cuvilliés, one of the leading interpreters of the Rococo style in Southern Germany and an architect for Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, influenced the design of this pair of ornately carved German commodes. Carved white "pearls" hang from the foreheads and the ears of the female busts adorning the corners, while scrolling leaves hang from the lower edge. The combination of white painted surfaces and gilded, pierced elements probably reflects the interior for which the commodes were originally designed. These commodes, with their sculptural elements in carved wood, differ from contemporary French pieces, which would have had applied gilt-bronze mounts for decoration.

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