Editing Neoclassicism (section)

=== France ===
==== Louis XVI style (1760–1789) ====
{{Main|Louis XVI style}}
<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">
École Militaire Paris Pavillon central depuis la cour d'honneur.jpg|Central pavilion of the [[École militaire]], Paris, 1752, by [[Ange-Jacques Gabriel]]{{sfn|de Martin|1925|p=11}}

Pantheon 1, Paris May 11, 2013.jpg|[[Panthéon]], Paris, by [[Jacques-Germain Soufflot]] and [[Jean-Baptiste Rondelet]], 1758–1790{{sfn|Jones|2014|p=276}}

L'Hôtel de la Marine (Paris) (51346237676).jpg|[[Hôtel de la Marine]], Paris, by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, 1761-1770{{sfn|de Martin|1925|p=13}}

West facade of Petit Trianon 002.JPG|Façade of the [[Petit Trianon]], Versailles, France, by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, 1764{{sfn|Jones|2014|p=273}}

The Petit Trianon (23935245609).jpg|Staircase of the Petit Trianon, by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, 1764{{sfn|Jones|2014|p=273}}

Salon de Compagnie - Petit Trianon (23935437909).jpg|Interior of the Petit Trianon, by Ange-Jacques Gabriel, 1764{{sfn|Jones|2014|p=273}}

Commode de la comtesse du Barry (Louvre, OA 11293).jpg|Commode of [[Madame du Barry]]; by [[Martin Carlin]] (attribution); 1772; oak base veneered with pearwood, rosewood and [[amaranth]], soft-paste [[Sèvres porcelain]], bronze gilt, white marble; 87 x 119&nbsp;cm; [[Louvre]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Jacquemart|first1=Albert|title=Decorative Art|date=2012|publisher=Parkstone|isbn=978-1-84484-899-7|page=65|url=|language=en}}</ref>

Hôtel du Châtelet JP2011 façade cour.jpg|[[Hôtel du Châtelet]], Paris, unknown architect, 1776<ref>{{cite book|last1=Larbodière|first1=Jean-Marc|title=L'Architecture de Paris des Origins à Aujourd'hui|date=2015|publisher=Massin|isbn=978-2-7072-0915-3|page=105|url=|language=fr}}</ref>

Bordeaux Grand Théâtre R03.jpg|Stairway of the [[Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux|Grand Theater of Bordeaux]], Bordeaux, France, by [[Victor Louis]], 1777-1780{{sfn|de Martin|1925|p=17}}

Jean-henri riesener, angoliera, 1785 ca.jpg|Parisian corner cabinet; by [[Jean Henri Riesener]]; 1780–1790; oak, mahogany, marble, and ormolu mounts; 94.3 × 81.3 × 55.9&nbsp;cm; [[Art Institute of Chicago]], US<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.artic.edu/artworks/96539/corner-cabinet |title=Corner Cabinet - The Art Institute of Chicago}}</ref>

Grand vase à fond beau bleu (Louvre, OA 6627) 2 (cropped and fixed angles).jpg|Large vase; 1783; hard porcelain and [[ormolu|gilt bronze]]; height: 2 m, diameter: 0.90 m; Louvre

Cabinet dore Marie-Antoinette Versailles.jpg|Cabinet Doré of [[Marie Antoinette]] at the [[Palace of Versailles]], Versailles, France, by the Rousseau brothers, 1783{{sfn|de Martin|1925|p=61}}

Secrétaire à cylindre de Marie-Antoinette (Louvre, OA 5226).jpg|Roll-top desk of Marie-Antoinette; by [[Jean-Henri Riesener]]; 1784; oak and pine frame, [[sycamore]], amaranth and rosewood veneer, bronze gilt; 103.6 x 113.4&nbsp;cm; Louvre<ref name="Decorative Art">{{cite book|last1=Jacquemart|first1=Albert|title=Decorative Art|date=2012|publisher=Parkstone|isbn=978-1-84484-899-7|page=61|url=|language=en}}</ref>

Table à écrire à pupitre de Marie-Antoinette (Louvre, OA 5509).jpg|Writing table of Marie Antoinette; by [[Adam Weisweiler]]; 1784; oak, ebony and sycamore veneer, Japanese lacquer, steel, bronze gilt; 73.7 x 81. 2&nbsp;cm; Louvre<ref name="Decorative Art"/>

Ewer MET DT236853.jpg|Ewer; 1784–1785; silver; height: 32.9&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Folding stool (pliant) (one of a pair) MET DP113122.jpg|Folding stool (pliant); 1786; carved and painted beechwood, covered in pink silk; 46.4 × 68.6 × 51.4&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Pair of vases MET DP168509.jpg|Pair of vases; 1789; hard-paste porcelain, gilt bronze, marble; height (each): 23&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Armchair (fauteuil) from Louis XVI's Salon des Jeux at Saint Cloud MET DP113960.jpg|Armchair (fauteuil) from Louis XVI's Salon des Jeux at [[Château de Saint-Cloud|Saint-Cloud]]; 1788; carved and gilded walnut, gold brocaded silk (not original); overall: 100 × 74.9 × 65.1&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
</gallery>

It marks the transition from [[Rococo]] to Classicism. Unlike the [[Louis XIV style|Classicism of Louis XIV]], which transformed ornaments into symbols, Louis XVI style represents them as realistic and natural as possible, i.e. laurel branches really are laurel branches, roses the same, and so on. One of the main decorative principles is symmetry. In interiors, the colours used are very bright, including white, light grey, bright blue, pink, yellow, very light lilac, and gold. Excesses of ornamentation are avoided.<ref>{{cite book |last1= Graur|first1=Neaga|title=Stiluri în arta decorativă|date=1970|publisher=Cerces|pages=200, 201 & 202|language=ro}}</ref> The return to antiquity is synonymous with above all with a return to the straight lines: strict verticals and horizontals were the order of the day. Serpentine ones were no longer tolerated, save for the occasional half circle or oval. Interior decor also honored this taste for rigor, with the result that flat surfaces and right angles returned to fashion. Ornament was used to mediate this severity, but it never interfered with basic lines and always was disposed symmetrically around a central axis. Even so, ''ébénistes'' often canted fore-angles to avoid excessive rigidity.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Sylvie|first1=Chadenet|title=French Furniture • From Louis XIII to Art Deco|date=2001|publisher=Little, Brown and Company|page=71|language=en}}</ref>

The decorative motifs of Louis XVI style were inspired by [[Ancient history|antiquity]], the Louis XIV style, and nature. Characteristic elements of the style: a torch crossed with a sheath with arrows, imbricated disks, [[guilloché]], double bow-knots, smoking braziers, linear repetitions of small motifs ([[Rosette (design)|rosettes]], beads, oves), [[Trophy of arms|trophy]] or floral medallions hanging from a knotted ribbon, [[acanthus (ornament)|acanthus]] leaves, [[gadrooning]], interlace, [[meander (art)|meanders]], [[cornucopia]]s, [[mascaron (architecture)|mascarons]], Ancient urns, tripods, perfume burners, dolphins, ram and lion heads, [[Chimera (mythology)|chimeras]], and [[gryphon]]s. Greco-Roman architectural motifs are also heavily used: [[Fluting (architecture)|flutings]], [[pilaster]]s (fluted and unfluted), fluted balusters (twisted and straight), [[column]]s ([[engaged column|engaged]] and unengaged, sometimes replaced by [[caryatid|caryathids]]), [[volute]] [[corbel]]s, [[triglyph]]s with [[gutta]]e (in [[relief]] and [[trompe-l'œil]]).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Sylvie|first1=Chadenet|title=French Furniture • From Louis XIII to Art Deco|date=2001|publisher=Little, Brown and Company|page=72|language=en}}</ref>

==== Directoire style (1789–1804) ====
{{Main|Directoire style}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">
Paris 10e Hôtel Gouthière 60675 (fixed angles).jpg|Panel with a [[grotesque]] in the [[Hôtel Gouthière]], Paris, unknown architect, unknown date

P1240239 Paris VI rue Jacob n46 rwk 2.jpg|Rue Jacob no. 46, Paris, unknown architect, unknown date

Corniquet - horloge à heures duodécimales et décimales.jpg|Astronomical clock; by [[Philippe-Jacques Corniquet]]; {{circa}}1794; gilt bronze and enamel face; unknown dimensions; [[Musée des Arts décoratifs, Paris]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://madparis.fr/~period/article-fiche-local4114en.html|title=ASTRONOMICAL CLOCK|website=madparis.fr|access-date=23 May 2021}}</ref>

Fan MET DP-314-001.jpg|Fan; by [[Charles Percier]], [[Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine]] and [[Antoine Denis Chaudet]]; {{circa}}1797-1799; paper, wood, and bone; 23.5 x 43.8&nbsp;cm; [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] (New York City)

Salon de madame Récamier - Bergère (Louvre, OA 11385).jpg|Armchair of the salon of [[Juliette Récamier]]; attributed to [[Jacob Frères]]; {{circa}}1798; various types of wood; 84.5 x 62.2 x 62&nbsp;cm; [[Louvre]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://collections.louvre.fr/ark:/53355/cl010116204|title=Bergère du salon de Madame Récamier (OA 11384 à 11391), d'une paire avec OA 11386|website=collections.louvre.fr|date=1799 |access-date=23 May 2022}}</ref>
</gallery>

====Empire style (1804–1815) ====
{{Main|Empire style}}

<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">
Coffeepot MET DP103166.jpg|Coffeepot; 1797–1809; silver gilt; height: 33.3&nbsp;cm; [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]], New York City

Château de Malmaison, France (48029730202).jpg|[[Empress Joséphine]]'s Bedroom in [[Château de Malmaison]], Rueil-Malmaison, France, by [[Charles Percier]] and [[Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine]], 1800-1802{{sfn|Jones|2014|p=275}}

Washstand (athénienne or lavabo) MET DP106594.jpg|Washstand (athénienne or lavabo); 1800–1814; legs, base and shelf of yew wood, [[ormolu|gilt-bronze]] mounts, iron plate beneath shelf; height: 92.4&nbsp;cm, width: 49.5&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Palais Bourbon, Paris 7e, NW View 140402 1.jpg|Portico of the [[Palais Bourbon]], Paris, by [[Bernard Poyet]], 1806-1808{{sfn|Hopkins|2014|p=111}}

Madeleine Paris.jpg|[[La Madeleine, Paris]], by [[Pierre-Alexandre Vignon]], 1807-1842{{sfn|Hopkins|2014|p=111}}

Pair of green vases, painted by Jean Georget, mounts by Pierre-Philippe Thomire, 1 of 2, Sèvres porcelain, 1809, soft-paste porcelain - Wadsworth Atheneum - Hartford, CT - DSC05493.jpg|Vase; 1809; hard-paste porcelain and gilded bronze handles; height: 74.9&nbsp;cm, diameter: 35.6&nbsp;cm; [[Wadsworth Atheneum]], Hartford, Connecticut, US<ref>{{cite book|last1=Odile|first1=Nouvel-Kammerer|title=Symbols of Power • Napoleon and the Art of the Empire Style • 1800-1815|date=2007|isbn=978-0-8109-9345-7|page=209|publisher=Abrams |language=en}}</ref>

Coin cabinet MET DP103176.jpg|Egyptian Revival coin cabinet; by [[François-Honoré-Georges Jacob-Desmalter]]; 1809–1819; [[mahogany]] (probably [[Swietenia mahagoni]]), with applied and inlaid silver; 90.2 x 50.2 x 37.5&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art

Clock Thomire Louvre OA9511.jpg|Clock with [[Mars (mythology)|Mars]] and [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]]; {{circa|1810}}; gilded bronze and patina; height: 90&nbsp;cm; Louvre

Austria-03324 - Cradle of Napoleon's Son (32936041295).jpg|King of Rome's Cradle; by [[Pierre-Paul Prud'hon]], [[Henri Victor Roguier]], [[Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot]] and [[Pierre-Philippe Thomire]]; 1811; wood, silver gilt, [[mother-of-pearl]], sheets of copper covered with velvet, silk and tulle, decorated with silver and gold thread; height: 216&nbsp;cm; [[Kunsthistorisches Museum]], Vienna, Austria<ref>{{cite book|last1=Odile|first1=Nouvel-Kammerer|title=Symbols of Power • Napoleon and the Art of the Empire Style • 1800-1815|date=2007|isbn=978-0-8109-9345-7|page=32|publisher=Abrams |language=en}}</ref>

Carpet MET DP360538.jpg|Carpet; 1814–1830; 309.9 × 246.4&nbsp;cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
</gallery>

Neoclassicism was representative for the new French society that exited the [[French Revolution|revolution]], setting the tone in all life fields, including art. The [[Jacquard machine]] was invented during this period (which revolutionised the entire sewing system, manual until then). One of the dominant colours was red, decorated with [[ormolu|gilt bronze]]. Bright colours were also used, including white, cream, violet, brown, blue, dark red, with little ornaments of gilt bronze. Interior architecture included wood panels decorated with gilt [[relief]]s (on a white background or a coloured one). Motifs were placed geometrically. The walls were covered in [[stucco]]s, wallpaper fabrics. [[Fireplace mantel]]s were made of white marble, having [[caryatid]]s at their corners, or other elements: [[obelisk]]s, [[sphinx]]es, winged lions, and so on. Bronze objects were placed on their tops, including [[French Empire mantel clock|mantel clocks]]. The doors consisted of simple rectangular panels, decorated with a Pompeian-inspired central figure. Empire fabrics are damasks with a blue or brown background, satins with a green, pink or purple background, velvets of the same colors, brooches broached with gold or silver, and cotton fabrics. All of these were used in interiors for curtains, for covering certain furniture, for cushions or upholstery (leather was also used for upholstery).<ref>{{cite book |last1= Graur|first1=Neaga|title=Stiluri în arta decorativă|date=1970|publisher=Cerces|pages=217, 219, 220 & 221|language=ro}}</ref>

All Empire ornament is governed by a rigorous spirit of symmetry reminiscent of the [[Louis XIV style]]. Generally, the motifs on a piece's right and left sides correspond to one another in every detail; when they do not, the individual motifs themselves are entirely [[symmetrical]] in composition: antique heads with identical tresses falling onto each shoulder, frontal figures of Victory with symmetrically arrayed tunics, identical rosettes or swans flanking a lock plate, etc. Like [[Louis XIV]], [[Napoleon]] had a set of emblems unmistakably associated with his rule, most notably the eagle, the bee, stars, and the initials [[I]] (for ''Imperator'') and [[N]] (for ''Napoleon''), which were usually inscribed within an imperial laurel crown. Motifs used include: figures of [[Nike (mythology)|Victory]] bearing palm branches, Greek dancers, nude and draped women, figures of antique chariots, winged [[putto|putti]], [[mascaron (architecture)|mascarons]] of [[Apollo]], [[Hermes]] and the [[Gorgon]], swans, lions, the heads of oxen, horses and wild beasts, butterflies, claws, winged [[Chimera (mythology)|chimeras]], [[sphinx]]es, [[Bucranium|bucrania]], sea horses, oak wreaths knotted by thin trailing ribbons, climbing grape vines, poppy [[rinceaux]], [[rosette (design)|rosettes]], palm branches, and laurel. There's a lot of Greco-Roman ones: stiff and flat [[acanthus (ornament)|acanthus]] leaves, [[palmette]]s, [[cornucopia]]s, beads, [[amphora]]s, tripods, imbricated disks, [[caduceus]]es of [[Mercury (mythology)|Mercury]], vases, helmets, burning torches, winged trumpet players, and ancient musical instruments (tubas, rattles and especially [[lyre]]s). Despite their antique derivation, the [[fluting (architecture)|fluting]] and [[triglyph]]s so prevalent under Louis XVI are abandoned. [[Egyptian Revival decorative arts|Egyptian Revival]] motifs are especially common at the beginning of the period: [[Scarab (artifact)|scarabs]], lotus [[capital (architecture)|capitals]], winged disks, obelisks, [[pyramid]]s, figures wearing [[nemes]]es, [[caryatid]]s ''en gaine'' supported by bare feet and with women Egyptian headdresses.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Sylvie|first1=Chadenet|title=French Furniture • From Louis XIII to Art Deco|date=2001|publisher=Little, Brown and Company|page=103 & 105|language=en}}</ref>