ART DECO MIRROR ATTRIBUTED TO MAURICE DUFRENE (1876-1955)

Oval mirror attributed to Maurice Dufrêne. Beechwood frame, carved with stylized plant motifs enclosing a bevelled mirror, flanked by trimmings. Art deco period.

Art Deco period, Circa: 1925

Dim: W:56cm, D:3,5cm, H:80cm.

Condition report: Some pitting on the mirror.

The training of French decorator Maurice Dufrêne (1876-1955) was comprehensive, both technically and theoretically. Starting out at the height of the Art Nouveau period, he reacted early on against the excesses of this style. From 1906 onwards, he produced numerous models for the various decorative arts: ironwork, ceramics, glassware and fabrics. In 1921, he became director of the Maîtrise des Galeries Lafayette (Galeries Lafayette masterclass), concerned with the adaptation of models to industrial production, particularly in the field of furniture, and their dissemination to a wide public. This department store initiative (Primavera at Printemps from 1912 with René Guilleré, Pomone at Bon Marché with Paul Follot, Studium at the Louvre) revealed a very new direction at a time when, on the contrary, most cabinetmakers were engaged in highly advanced research into materials and execution, and thus limited their production to a wealthy elite. Today, many of his works remain unidentified.