Research
Of painted wood. Each white painted seat of curved rectangular shape, with narrower front apron and wider rear apron, painted to the top with a border of green foliage with red berries. The seat of each lifting to reveal an upholstered seat and backrest, transforming the stool into chair, above a frieze with block carving at each corned raised on four tapering fluted legs. Shaped wrought iron supports attached to the bottom of each rear leg for additional support. Very old paint refreshed over apparently original surface.
Marks
Stamped below the seat rail:
DELAPORTE
Provenance
Prominent US Collection
Sold by Dalva Brothers, Inc September 23, 1994
Ex. Collection Mrs. Deane F. Johnson
In eighteenth century France, furniture-making reflected a shift in Parisian social conventions, which “became largely dominated by witty and intelligent women, the newly self-appointed arbiters of taste, who encouraged the development of a more intimate and sociable society.”1 In general, chairs became lower and lighter in form, making them easily movable for personal conversation. These more informal French seating trends quickly became à la mode elsewhere in Europe.