Louis XVI style

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Louis XVI style

This reaction to rococo flippancy predated and outlasted the king whose name describes it. Sparing neoclassical themes and straight lines returned. The cabriole leg was ousted by square or round-turned feet and then the saber leg. Breakfront case shapes replaced the flamboyant bombé. Plain or pale colors supplemented brighter ones. More numerous skilled cabinetmakers obtained wider patronage. Three specialized types of commode appeared in the 1770s followed c. 1775 by the bonheur de jour, a popular cabinetsurmounted small writing desk.

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References in periodicals archive ?

Even before the death of the old king, Richardson declared: 'Lepautre set the pattern of the French interior which was to run on through the XVIII century until 1770, when the return to classicism, more familiar as Louis XVI style, began.

From the archives: the duc d'Orleans ruled France as Regent for just eight years, wrote John Richardson in 1949, but the influence of his taste was pervasive

A Louis XVI style gilt bronze mounted mahogany bookcase

Finding the missing Linke; ANTIQUES

Right, an elegant Louis XVI stand with inset marble top A Louis XVI style gilt bronze mounted mahogany bookcase