Charles-Honoré Lannuier
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Charles-Honoré Lannuier, French cabinetmaker (1779–1819), lived and worked in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. In Lannuier's time, the style of his furniture was described as "French Antique." Today, his work is classified primarily as Federal furniture, Neoclassical, or American Empire.


Early life and influences

Charles-Honoré Lannuier was born outside of Paris in Chantilly, France, on June 27, 1779, son to Michel-Cyrille Lannuier, an innkeeper, and his wife, Marie-Geneviève Malice. From childhood, Lannuier was influenced by his older brother, Nicolas-Louis-Cyrille Lannuier, and an uncle, Jean-Baptiste Cochois, both successful cabinetmakers selling furniture in pre-Revolutionary Paris. Both relatives contributed to Lannuier's training as an ''
ébéniste An ''ébéniste'' () is a cabinet-maker, particularly one who works in ebony. The term is a loanword from French and translates to "ebonist". Etymology and ambiguities As opposed to ''ébéniste'', the term ''menuisier'' denotes a woodcarver or ...
'' (furniture maker). The social unrest and disruption of the economy by the French Revolution caused Lannuier to emigrate to the young American Republic in 1803. Though the French Revolution brought the disbandment of the furniture guilds, and the associated fashionable practice of labeling pieces with a maker's label, Lannuier continued that tradition in the U.S. despite its lack of guilds.


Materials and decorative motifs

In Paris, Lannuier worked primarily in mahogany, with limited amounts of satinwood and rosewood veneer inlays. Early pieces show the influence of late
Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...
-style furniture. After moving to the United States, Lannuier benefitted from the more stable economy and access to exotic hardwoods, which allowed him to work on a larger scale using solid pieces of precious wood. Lannuier's furniture is characterized by its use of architectural motifs–-columns, brackets, pediments, and pilasters; Greek and Roman motifs including
anthemion The palmette is a motif in decorative art which, in its most characteristic expression, resembles the fan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. It has a far-reaching history, originating in ancient Egypt with a subsequent development through the art o ...
s, lyres,
caryatid A caryatid ( ; ; ) is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking the place of a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on her head. The Greek term ''karyatides'' literally means "maidens of Karyai", an ancient t ...
s, dolphins,
laurel wreath A laurel wreath is a symbol of triumph, a wreath (attire), wreath made of connected branches and leaves of the bay laurel (), an aromatic broadleaf evergreen. It was also later made from spineless butcher's broom (''Ruscus hypoglossum'') or cher ...
s, and winged figures. Federal motifs associated with the early Republic include eagles and five- or six-pointed stars. Large figures were carved and gilded, while smaller decorative mounts were cast in bronze and gilded.


Range of furniture

Lannuier's earlier work included sideboards, commodes, worktables, dining tables and chairs, and game tables. One set of his early chairs was purchased by James Bosley, a Merchant from Baltimore, Maryland. This particular set of twelve (12) Lannuier chairs (referred to as the "James Bosley Set") consisting of 2 Arm chairs and 10 side chairs in the Neoclassical French style was purchased for Bosley's Music room in Baltimore, Maryland. According to Mr. Peter Kenny's Book on Lannuier for the NY Met (pages 133–137) it is believed that James Bosley acquired the set of chairs from Lannuier's client, A.S. Bulloch in Savannah, Georgia. Archibald Stobo Bullock and his Wife, Sara Glen built the 'Bulloch-Habersham' house at 229 Barnard Street, Orleans Square in Savannah, Georgia, and filled the new house with a large quantity of furniture that had been shipped to Bulloch from Charles-Honore'Lannuier shortly before his death. Due to the Great Savannah Fire of 1820, Bulloch was forced to sell his possessions and eventually his house. James Bosley purchased the set which he used to furnish the music room in his new townhouse on Calvert Street in Baltimore. The James Bosley set was passed down to his wife, Elizabeth Nicholson (Noel) Bosley, who, dying without issue, passed the set to her sister, Margaret Esther (Noel) Wyat, who left the set to her only child, Architect James Bosley Noel Wyatt. Mr. Wyatt left most of the chairs and other Lannuier pieces to the Maryland Historical Society in Baltimore. However, one chair from this set resides at the NY Met and two remain with family members. Two side chairs from the Bosley set remain unaccounted for. As the Empire style became more entrenched and his success grew, Lannuier produced larger, more expensive pieces, including sofas, cylinder desks and bedsteads. While his pieces are considered within the Empire style, Lannuier's work is distinct for being more delicate and for recalling the refinement found in the
Directoire The Directory (also called Directorate; ) was the system of government established by the French Constitution of 1795. It takes its name from the committee of 5 men vested with executive power. The Directory governed the French First Republ ...
style. Examples of Lannuier's furniture can be seen in the White House Red Room, the Albany Institute of History and Art, the
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the list of largest art museums, 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 painting ...
, and New York's
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...
and Bartow-Pell Mansion. The New York Metropolitan Museum of Art New York published a book titled: "Honoré Lannuier, Cabinetmaker from Paris (The Life and Work of a French Ebénisté in Federal New York)" by Peter M. Kenny, Frances F. Bretter and Ulrich Leben that outlines Lannuier's work.


See also

*
Duncan Phyfe Duncan Phyfe (1768 – 16 August 1854) was one of nineteenth-century America's leading cabinetmakers. Rather than create a new furniture style, he interpreted fashionable European trends in a manner so distinguished and particular that he beca ...
, another esteemed cabinetmaker from the period.


References

* Abbott, James A. ''A Frenchman in Camelot: The Decoration of the Kennedy White House by Stéphane Boudin.'' Boscobel Restoration Inc.: 1995. . * Abbott James A., and Elaine M. Rice. ''Designing Camelot: The Kennedy White House Restoration.'' Van Nostrand Reinhold: 1998. . * Kenny, Peter M., Frances F. Bretter and Ulrich Leben. ''Honoré Lannuier Cabinetmaker from Paris: The Life and Work of French'' Ébiniste ''in Federal New York.'' The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and Harry Abrams: 1998. . * Monkman, Betty C. ''The White House: The Historic Furnishing & First Families.'' Abbeville Press: 2000. .


External links


Mary Anne Hunting, ''Charles-Honoré Lannuier: Cabinetmaker from New York''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lannuier, Charles-Honore French furniture designers 1779 births 1819 deaths French cabinetmakers French expatriates in the United States