Important Regence commode attributed to Doirat

An important and very rare Regence period "aux espagnolettes" chest of drawers, curved on all sides, in violet wood veneer, opening with four drawers in three rows.

Capped with a superb Belgian Griotte Red marble with ears and beaks, this chest of drawers, exclusively veneered with violet wood, is enlivened by a powerful crossbow-shaped curve on the front, wide uprights with a particularly prominent pinched profile and a very rare S-shaped curve on the sides.

Although not necessarily a commissioned piece, this piece of furniture is very probably unique, as it is made to order (as opposed to routine production), a specialty of the greatest Parisian cabinetmakers. There is a plethora of details to highlight on this model, as well as a real innovation. This concerns the particular profile of the rear stile facing (never before seen, to our knowledge, on an example from this period).
The exceptional character of this commode can be seen in several exclusive features: high-quality bronze ornamentation with superb chasing, including very rare espagnolettes (of a particularly luxurious model, both in form and chasing, and which we have only seen on six commodes: four by Etienne Doirat, one by François Lieutaud and one by Louis Delaitre), no less rare pull handles "aux bouffons", brass fluting with rudentures (others would say "à bouchons") on all sides (it should be noted that their presence on this form of curved front jamb is already quite exceptional in itself), S-shaped curved sides punctuated by rear uprights whose "cavet" recess (unlike the traditional recess of Louis XIV and early Regency commodes) is strongly concave.
This unprecedented curvature of the rear upright in continuity with the side has the effect of making the flanks almost immediately visible, giving the chest of drawers its full depth, while highlighting the added luxury of the rear fluting.

The quality of the violet wood veneer and the intricate curling used by the cabinetmaker to sublimate it are also noteworthy. The walnut used to make the drawer pedestals, and the finish of the drawer pedestals, also mark a work of the highest quality, specific to the work of leading Regency cabinetmakers such as Charles Cressent, François Lieutaud, Michel Mallerot and François Garnier.
Last but not least, the majesty of its dimensions should be mentioned, with a width of over 145cm.

This piece of furniture is in very fine original condition, with a thick veneer in warm, deep tones, as it has not been re-sanded. It has been restored and finished with a high-level stamped varnish by a master cabinetmaker.

Parisian Regency work, attributed to Etienne Doirat, first third of the 18th century.

Etienne Doirat (1665 - 1732) was one of the most important and talented cabinetmakers of the Regency period. He was registered at Grand-Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine when he married in 1704. In 1726, he set up his workshop in the Cour de la Contrescarpe des Fossés de la Bastille and, in 1731, rented a store in the fashionable Rue Saint-Honoré (run by his son-in-law Louis Simon Painsun), one of Paris's main addresses for luxury retailers. Pierre Kjellberg tells us that the production of this cabinetmaker, who worked all his life in the Faubourg Saint-Antoine district for a wealthy French and foreign clientele, is synonymous with classicism and quality. Although little is known about Doirat's production prior to the Regency period, since he only marked his work at the end of this period and during the last years of his career, the work of Jean-Dominique Augarde (Etienne Doirat Menuisier en ébène) has shown that this cabinetmaker had exclusive rights to certain bronze models, including a number of espagnolette models.

Dimensions: 83 cm high x 146 cm wide / (124 cm front) x 64.5 cm deep.