FRENCH 3 REGENCY AND ROCOCO STYLES

The Regency style occurred from 1700-1730 and was the transitional style from Baroque. The Rococo style was introduced by Regency and was a less formal style of decoration. Furniture during the regency style included lost symmetry and was light and more curved. The frames were more exposed in furniture at this time. Chairs has less of a rectangular back with lower seats. The arms were usually padded and were not an extension of the legs.

Like I said before Rococo style was introduced by Regency and was a less formal style of decoration. During this time there was a rise of the common folk. It was also known as the age of reason and rocaille (rock work). There were many changes in building places including city mansions and townhouses rather than chateaux and palaces. Exteriors and gardens became less important. Confortable and private living were important and they had halls, cooridors and smaller dwellings. Feminine style was introduced by women (the mistresses of Louis XV). This style included secret rooms with openings in paneling or through the back of wardrobes. Hostesses competed with eachother to entertain the most prominent guests. They had every room type we have today, except the bathroom. When it came to furniture the creation of a team or a group of craftsmen belonging to distinct guilds were introduced. These people were paid to decorate and think through spaces to make them appealing. They liked to copy designs.  Patterned books were popular at this time as well. The most popular cabinetmaker was Jean Francois Oeben. He was a marqueteur and created the Bureau du Roi.

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FRENCH 2 BAROQUE STYLE

Louis XIV created a national style of art during the Baroque style period. This national style was made also by Jean Baptiste Colbert, who was a french statesman. He also established a school for 60 children under the King's protection. He became "Masters" of their craft. Nicolas Fouquet was the superintendent of Finances. He created Vaux-le-Vicomte which had 105 lavish rooms and 170 acres of gardens. It had Persian carpets, crystal chandeliers, gold locks, silver vases, and also entertained 6,000 guests. 

The Palais de Versailles was originally a hunting lodge designed by Louis XIII. It started in 1668 and continued for about a century. When it came to the interior, it was all decorative furniture for royal residences. It had classical architecture and decoration with rectangular shapes with symmetrical ceilings. It also had balances windows and mirrors. It actually includes a hall or mirrors. The gardens here were absolutely amazing. 

Chairs at this time had high backs, wide seats for wide dresses. The bergere was also introduced here. A sense of greatness came along with these chairs. A bergere is an enclosed upholstered French arm chair with an upholstered back and armrests on upholstered frames. The materials they used came from China and Japan. 

 

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French 1 Review

Scott: I liked how you broke it down into sections and I also really liked all of the pictures you chose!

Alex: I liked how you incorporated your pictures in with your writing. It flowed really well.

FRENCH RENAISSANCE 1

The French Renaissance was the first time we saw a "decorator". These decorators designed luxurious rooms that were consistent with the rest of the job. At this time the ornamaniste or decorator was born. This job required a person that could not only conceive design, but through the process of engraving the design to a client. The decorators at the time were very artistic and provided the highest quality of design.

A famous parton of the arts at this time was Francois I. He used Gothic forms with Italian Renaissance ornament using a transitional style. Some examples of his work are; Loire Valley, Chateau de Champbord, Chateau de Fontainebleau, and the Chateau de Blois. He helped the renovation of the Louvre to Renaissance style.

When it came to architecture they realized there was no need for religious structures, and they started building palaces and chateaux. An example of this is the Loire Valley. This was a park like setting that sprawled the plans of chateaux. The weather required steep roofs, many chimneys, and large windows. The roofs often had two slopes with dormer windows. A famous room that was very common is the mansard roof. This roof type was made by Francois Mansart who was a French Baroque architect. An interesting fact is that the interior usually never matched the outside of a building.

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Spanish Review

Madelyn: You did a good job condensing the information and I really enjoyed the pictures you chose. Overall, good job.

Lisa: I really like your current application pictures and I thought you did a good job talking about all the information about the Spanish Period.

THE SPANISH PERIOD

A great loss to the handicrafts and commerce of southern Spain happened in 1607 during the final expulsion of the Moors. The 16th centurey was their most brilliant era in history. There successful navigators and trades resulted in fabulous amounts of gold and silver. The Moors wee from Africa and were kind of like the Islamic designs. They had colorful geometric designs. They also loved woodwork. The Spanish Christian groups was kind of a mix of the two.

The Alhambra was the highest achievement of the Spanish Palaces. It had numerous courtyards with gardens, fountains, and reflecting pools. It was also the last spanish palace they built.

The Mota Castle was built by noble Christain families. IT was build of concrete walls that were faced with brisk. An interesting fact I learned is; more castles were in Spain than any other European country.

The Granda Cathedral was a traditional five-aisle building that had Gothic vaulting. The Cathedral of Seville was located in Seville and it was the largest cathedral in the world in the 15th century. It was also Gothic style. It was even larger than the Hagia Sophia! This building was a great demontration of the cities wealth.

The Plateresco Phase was a silversmiths style. The minute and delicate ornament resembled the work of a silversmith. It was used on exteriors, patios, churches, public buildings, furniture, and accessories. The Desornamentado Phase is unornamented.The powerful style was characterized by austerity. This style applied to court, ecclesiastical and public buildings. It was a reaction to Plateresco Style. This style has carefully defined proportions.

The Escorial was started by Philip II and it started in 1562. It was completed by Juan de Herrera. It was an imitation of the Temple of Solomon. This included a palace and a religious house. It was supposed to have a mausoleum for the king's father, but was never constructed. It is located 30 miles north west of Spain and was a highly "moral" building.

Residential design was influenced by Moorish Design. The interiors included windows, openings, wrought-iron handrails. They also had colored tiles, paneled ceilings, and white decorative borders around the doors and windows.


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Italian Renaissance Review

Katie: You did a good job summarizing this chapter. Your were very descriptive. I also really like your first current application picture.

Rachael: I liked how you described each building with bullet points. It made it easier to read. I also really liked the pool examples you chose for current application pictures.

ITALIAN RENAISSANCE

Renaissance began in Florence, Italy and meant "rebirth". It shifted from a religious to a secular emphasis. The Roman catholic church had become very powerful. They were corrupted and misconduct. Martin Luther was a reform of the church. The printing Press was a really important invention at this time. Also, there was the writings of Dante, which supported their movement towards humanism.

Another important person during this time was Lorenzo de' Medici. He promoted family and he was a business man, banker, and patron of the arts. Everyone in Italy was interested in the arts. It didn't matter if you were rich or poor. Another thing that was popular was residential design. Comfort, convenience and beauty became important, rather than safety, strength and protection. A well rounded education was important for "The Renaissance man".

Ancient Roman style and details added to buildings medieval in concept. There was also an emphasis on interior architecture, not the furniture. One of the finest achievements of the Italian Renaissance was the Italian Renaissance. Power and influence of prominent families included the Medici family. Brunelleschi was a famous architect, sculpture and mechanical engineer. He started the addition of Florence Cathedral. He was the person who first acknowledged Renaissance architecture. Two more important buildings were; Florence Cathedral (main church in Florence, and the Brunelleschi (inspired by Pantheon).

The Renaissance palazzo facade was the term that refers to the general shape, proportion and a cluster of characteristics, rather than a specific design. The design during this time was symmetrical, compound repeated windows, and heavy cornices. They usually had no hallways, walls pierced with niches, and living spaces over stores similar to the Roman insula.

Furniture was portable and sparce. It had inlays of ivory, lapis, marble, onyx, and other stones. They was usually gilding on furnature. The finest furnature was walnut. Examples of furnature were; straight box-like armchar(sedia), the sgabello, the X chair, the Savonarola chair, and the chest.

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