914/​819

Joseph Dufour et Cie (, founded in 1797)

'Telemachus on the Island of Calypso'. A set of two pairs of wallpapers, block-printed colourful panoramic views composed on joined sheets of wallpaper later mounted on canvas, architectural landscapes animated by mythological character scenes. Paris, 1815–20. H. 247 cm x 211 cm / H. 247 cm x 209 cm and H. 247×262. (4)

Panoramic wallpaper: Already at the end of the 18th century, panoramic wallpaper was ready to replace tapestries and silk panels, which had become too expensive for bourgeois and aristocratic homes. The motifs showing the neoclassical style, which was in vogue at the time, experienced an unprecedented growth and many workshops appeared, both in Paris and in the provinces. Joseph Dufour's workshop was one of the most famous of them and compete with the other wallpaper companig called Zuber. Joseph Dufour was born in Tramayes (today in Saône-et-Loire) in 1754, he first settled in Macon, where his factory was founded in 1797, before settling in Paris ten years later. The designers Laffitte and Xavier Mader brought their talent to the company and gained traction and popularity in all parts of society. Dufour then began his production of panoramic papers, often depicting colorful classical, oriental or even very exotic landscapes from the shores of the Bosphorus to the islands of the South Sea or as we discover at this sale architectural landscapes with animated mythological scenes, showing young girls in Greco-Roman tunics and uniformed soldiers on horseback, while elsewhere they indulge in the joys of the swing.

Auction

Manuscripts from Valdemar's Castle and antiques, 14 June 2023

Category
Estimate

175,000–200,000 DKK

Price realised

Not sold