"He looks weird, but he smells like one of us!"

And with such candor, Fellow Deco Hounds, was your host Jacques welcomed to La Belle France in March of this year, 2009.

France?! In 2009, the year of Constriction, Constaint, and Contraction?! That's right, (practically) nothing keeps your hunter from la chasse.

France. Another "religious experience!" And why not start with a drive-by photo-shooting of Chartres? Note the wintry gray sky, the bare trees. It was COLD! "Where's the DECO?!"

 

Pigeons, yes! But what's a parrot doing flying around Chartres?! Who knows, but two of them fell into my butterfly net, and with such colorful signed Rethondes shades! That's a deep, rich cobalt blue on the bottom of the shades, much prettier than in these pictures. These sconces are about a foot high and are made of solid bronze/brass, 'natch.

Tres, tres cool! Squawk!

 

I've seen my share of Modernist lamps, but NOTHING quite as impressive as these! They're only about 7 inches tall; but oh, my, "every inch is packed with dynamite!" The decorative element in the middle is faceted black glass, and the metal is satin nickel over brass. Aren't the conical shades cute? Yikes, they even have their original cords AND the cutest in-line interrupteurs (switches) you'll ever see!

 

It's an eagle flying across your screen this time!! This light is a bit less "Deco" than my standard fare, but it's so well designed and executed I just had to have it! You too?! It hangs around 22 inches long as shown, but I can add chain if necessary.

 

If you've ever mounted a search for tubular sconces you know how impossibly hard to find they are. This pair, in its original chrome-over-brass plate, is particularly sleek and compact. They'll use a 6-inch tubular bulb, which comes in wattages up to 60 each.

 

The things men do for love! This somewhat abstracted but well-modeled powerhouse is cast in bronze, has a mint-condition patina, and is no doubt showing off to gain affection. Has he won your heart? He stands about nine inches tall, a foot long. Signed on the metal, vaguely legible as ...coux.

 

The warm glow of opalescent glass crowns this little jewel, the perfect lamp for that dark corner. It's only about 6 inches high! Tres cool (yes, that's a French phrase) the way the beads on the bottom of the metal are mirrored on the edge of the glass...

 

Schneider -- so classically Art Deco, so pure of form. It's a tall one, 12 1/2 inches, eminently suited to holding your favorite flowers. And the deep topaz color obscures the stems, directing your attention where it should be, at least until you've thrown the flowers away and are back to enjoying the artistry of the decoration on the glass!

 

"Oooff!" as they say in France. Well, I'm not going to rattle on about the fiery color in the center, or that fetching violet, or the brilliant sheen, or the positively arresting hand-wrought iron, I'll just leave you with "Oooff!" Schneider, of course!

It doesn't get much better than this, does it!?

 

This spectacular (and tall at 5' 10") torchiere has a rich, lovely patina on both the wood and the copper plated and patinated shade.

 

Page after page of positively luscious pochoires. So vibrant the colors, how do they stay on the page?

The perfect antidote to a foggy San Francisco day: curl up in your favorite Art Deco chair and feast your eyes on these works of art!

 

Nature does have her way of trumping mankind's finest art efforts, so now we'll show off this piece of Circassian walnut. You be the judge.

The simplified cabriole leg tells us "Art Deco." This "occasional"or side table measures 27 1/2 by 18 1/2 and is 24 high.

 

In keeping with our Circassian walnut table's color palette, this alabaster bowl, diminutive that it is (about 12 inches across), has the look of ancient stone (which is just what it is!!). Does it belong in a Greek villa or your home? The extra-large canopy, a riot of acorns and leaves, completes the naturalist picture admirably, adding panache, if I may say so...and the cordelier is original and in super condition.

 

Let's take a break from our indoors Beauty Bash. Here dawn's light plays on the wall outside the Chateau Bagnols, a 13th century fortress recently restored and renovated to receive the world's nobility, 45 minutes north of Lyon. Go enjoy a three-hour lunch there, it will be an afternoon you'll never forget!

 

Another superb work, a fruit bowl (who the hell would ever put fruit in it?!) in opalescent glass by that d'Avesn master-glass-designer fellow! It's about a foot across.

 

I've marveled at the complexity and diversity of French lighting for years, and here's another feather in that cap, the "Pirouette." How French, that name. Where's its tu-tu? This one, 14 inches tall to the top of the crown of the shade (when it's not extended) is in essentially mint condition, a true rarity; by this I mean that the chrome is "as though just off the showroom floor." And, just to throw a little gas on your flames, my pirouette has a slightly larger cousin. This one is 17 inches tall, to the top of the shade crown, without extension (which puts it up another 4 inches). The larger lamp can hold a 100-watt bulb under its mighty shade, whereas the smaller one is limited to 60 watts.

 

 

A hand-blown signed Muller suspension delights the eye this time, with its fiery red, orange and purple. The bowl is 40 cm across, larger than the standard 35 cm, and so it will lend more presence to your room. The hand-wrought iron leaf-shaped rosettes and canopy are such delightful naturalist manifestations!

 

I don't know if this is old or new, but it sure works for me with those vibrant Provencale colors, not to mention the message!

 

This paperweight/sculpture (about six inches long) has definitely been around a while! The bronze base gives it authority, no? The large die is solid steel, the smaller ones bronze. Merveilleux!

 

Subtley colored Muller shades grace these hand-wrought iron sconces (yes, there's a pair).

 

And speaking of Muller.. this is the crown jewel of my Muller acquisitions, EVER!! Frankly, I've never seen a finer pate de verre lamp of this type. The colors are rich, deep, and varied (orange, yellow, red, purple). It stands just under 12 inches high. The quality of the glass? Like silk! Woof!

 

Gladky's Nouvelles Compositions is a must for the serious collector of Art Deco ephemera. There were two "series," I have just this one. Here are a couple of examples of the pochoires inside.

 

One of a pair of high style French barrel armchairs. Classic ribbed legs and carved wood ornamentation... upholstered in velvet.

 

An elegantly configured fixture by Boretti of Lyon, a first-class manufacturer of lighting during the magical Art Deco period. Boretti's castings were of the highest quality as was their finishing machine work. I've refinished it in brushed nickel: jewelry for your home!

While I'm crowing about Boretti, I might as well show off this totally incredible fixture by Boretti, which I've just refinished in brushed nickel, rewired, and hung in the store!

Leaping gazelles adorn two fanciful iron grilles which measure 37 1/2 high, 13 wide.

 

Probably Czech or Bohemian, this clear, faceted crystal vase is about 12 inches tall; a geometry bash in its own right!

 

A wildly accented alabaster bowl with a big dimple in the middle! As you can see, it has four chains, another rarity. The bronze canopy and rosettes are tops, too. The alabaster has that unusual quality of having a quartz-like stone in its makeup. Perhaps that contributes to the special glow this one has...

These hand-wrought iron andirons just take the very cake, don't they?!

And, for my next-togrand finale, "lighting as fine art!" This exquisitely designed and executed table/desk lamp is by Henri Fournier, one of the most skilled ferronniers (ironworkers) of the period. He signed his works (as is this one) "Le Fer Forge HF." The magnificently colored shade is by Daum, the signature ("Daum Nancy France") incised in the glass in the usual place. There's a one-inch hairline crack in the shade, up at the top, which looks like it's been there "a long time," and if you don't throw ice water on it, I doubt that it will ever expand.

Note the extremely fine, symmetrical work on the decorative element inside the arm...

...juxtaposed by the bold, irregular work on the base! That Fournier's signature stamped into the base, which you can read if you have a magnifying glass available! It reads: LeFerForgeHF

You think it a bit curious that I've mentioned a "next-to grand finale" above. That's because the Grand Pooh-bah was still in restoration when I put this web page together. And now here it is, in all its glory, a signed Delatte table lamp (third photo: Delatte Nancy) with a one-piece glass shade with enameled design. It's nineteen inches tall and the shade is about a foot across. I'll leave the heavy breathing to you, but I can hardly contain myself.

*****

I've given you just a broad brush stroke of new acquisitions and newly renovated items. There's much more in the store! C'mon by and check it out for yourself. Don't forget to call first! 415 518 2123 (cell) and 415 474 6886 (the store).

On the other hand, if there's anything on this page you want to inquire about, by all means: e-mail Jack for a price. One excellent way to identify the item, instead of trying to describe it, is to copy my blah-blah under it and paste it onto your e-mail.

THE DECO SHOW: I won't be showing at the Concourse over Art Deco weekend, but the store will be open on that Saturday and, if you want to come by another day, don't hesitate to call!

I'll leave you with a few tantalizing photos of France, including a shot of a carved stone sculpture by Volte (sorry, not for sale!) outside the Volte museum in Villefranche-sur-Mer, just east of Nice.

Yes, this would spruce up my garden...

Villefranche-sur-Mer. And to think, I was there just a few weeks ago! BOO-HOO!

Night descends on Legny, 45 minutes north-east of Lyon.

"Stairway... to Heaven..."