Transition desk armchair stamped Nadal l'aîné - Paris 18th century

Rare solid beechwood waxed, molded, carved and darkened cane desk chair with cushion and backrest fully upholstered in “cognac” leather.
It is stamped J.NADAL*L'AINE for Jean-René Nadal dit l'aîné (stamped on a front crosspiece).
At first glance, it's clear that this is no routine seat, but a model of the highest quality and originality. The particular movement of the wrap-around backrest (echoed on the de Camondo armchair / see documentation) with the armrests forming part of the “grand dossier”, the excellent “coup de fouet” of the armrest supports and the elegant, daring curves of the legs, are well ordered, well thought-out and uncluttered sculpture of superb quality and avant-garde aestheticism (see the cartel on the cushioning of the grand dossier). Note the presence of an original reinforcing bar in beech (these kinds of bars were used on certain office chairs, which could obviously be fragile due to the wide spacing between the front and rear legs / we read in a document from Guillaume Janneau's book that an armchair by Meunier is stamped on a similar reinforcing bar / Nadal chose to stamp one of the crosspieces and, Nadal has chosen to stamp on one of the crosspieces and, because of their sinuosities, the left-hand part of the iron has left little mark on the wood, making the beginning of the stamp difficult to read, but without there being any possible doubt as to the signature).
Born in 1733 and active until 1785, Jean-Réné Nadal dit l'aîné, from a family of skilled Parisian carpenters, is the most famous of them all, and one of the greatest carpenters of the 18th century. Indeed, he was one of those rare craftsmen whose involvement in the search for new forms had a decisive influence on the evolution of the styles of his time, earning him work not only for the Count of Artois, but also for the Crown. If we had to name two carpenters who indisputably influenced Georges Jacob, we would have to mention Delanois (who was his master) and Nadal (who was his predecessor working for the Comte d'Artois).
Wide and enveloping, particularly comfortable and stable, built in a perfect balance of form and proportion with harmoniously distributed carved decoration, our armchair is in very fine original condition, with no reinforcements. It has been meticulously waxed in our workshop and its patina is absolutely superb.
Parisian work from the Louis XV period.


Dimensions: height 87 cm x width 63 cm (52 cm between armrests) x depth 54 cm (47 cm seat depth).