Émile Gallé "Ombelle" Étagère Wall Shelf
$75,000
This "Ombelle" floral design étagère wall shelf by Émile Gallé features a central section with a solid door, decorated with butterflies in flight against a background with clouds. The French Art Nouveau shelves are flanked on the sides, top, and bottom, with molded and carved umbel floral accents, mimicking a tree wrapping itself around the étagère.
- Product Details
- Curator's Notes
Item #: F-19843
Artist: Émile Gallé
Circa: 1900
Dimensions: 39.5" height, 49" width, 11" depth
Materials: French walnut, Fruitwood marquetry inlay, Gilt brass key
Literature: Similar wall shelf pictured in The Paris Salon 1895-1914, by Alastair Duncan, op. cit., model repr. p. 235; Similar wall shelf also pictured in The Modern Style, by Laurence Buffet-Challie, Ed. Baschet et Cie, Paris 1975, similar model repr. p. 22
Exhibition History: Presented at The School of Nancy, in Paris, 1903
This piece was commissioned by the magistrate Henri Gaston de Bousquet de Florian, who asked Émile Gallé to furnish a bedroom for him and his future wife, having seen his "Ombelle" furniture on display in a Paris exhibition at the Pavillon de Marsan in 1903. This piece, along with the rest of the bedroom suite, had remained with the family since.