Rare French Art Deco
Trumeau Wall Mirror with signed Oil Painting
Framed in 12Kt White Gold Leafing with 23 Yellow gold accents
Dated signature, 1937, France
Extremely Rare French Art Deco
period Trumeau Decorative wall mirror
with signed oil painting. Two toned gilded design allows you to use
this with white or yellow
metals in your décor. A rare and elegant mirror, ideal for an
entryway or over a buffet.
This is the first true Art Deco Trumeau we have ever had the
pleasure to offer.
This is also the first we have ever seen.
Framed in the original wood frame
that was hand carved, covered with gesso and finished with
a 12 kt White and 23carat yellow gold, water gilded decoration.
Stylized floral and fan decoration are created in the corners of the
mirror frame.
Original mirror intact.
The signed oil painting that is
featured over the mirror is signed, with a signature that appears
to read ‘M. Thieftey, 1937.’ The Nature themed scenic painting
features a man and woman watching
a sunset over water. The forest frames the painting with foliage and
natural elements.
The 12 carat white gold and 23 carat
yellow gold leaf was painstakingly applied with the old world
methods rarely used today, such as water gilding. The 12 carat white
gold leaf has a soft patina
and warmer cast than the silver or metal leaf finishes that are more
common.
Water gilding is a more elaborate process requiring greater
preparation, but its elegance and
refinement of finish are unsurpassed. Water gilding is used mainly
for picture frames, furniture,
religious artifacts, sculpture, objects d'art and also for the
embellishment of stately buildings.
The process essentially consists of applying six to twelve coats of
gesso to the substrate to
produce a very fine smooth surface, followed by four to eight coats
of bole, a refined clay available
in various colors. The bole is polished to a fine finish (any flaws
or grit would ruin the appearance of the
gilding), coated with dilute size and allowed to dry. The surface is
then wetted with water and gold leaf
is laid onto it immediately; as the water soaks into the gesso it
quickly draws the gold into close
contact with the surface. When dry, any loose fragments of gold leaf
are skewed off as in oil gilding and
the surface is given a protective coat of ormolu size to enhance the
color and uniformity of the gilding.
Ormolu size is a mixture of weak size and lacquer colored with a
little orange-red resin called
'dragon's blood'. It is common for different elements of a
water-gilded piece to be given contrasting
finishes to enhance the design. This effect is called 'bright and
matt' gilding. The bright passages
are usually gilded twice but they are not ormolu sized. Instead they
are burnished with a burnishing tool,
a polished rounded stone agate set in a wooden handle, to produce a
mirror finish.
This mirror was restored employing
this period appropriate, old world tradition.
Overall Dimensions: 54 ˝ ” high, 31
1/8” wide.
Mirror alone: 29 7/8” high, 24 1/8” wide.
Condition: Mirror Frame is in
excellent restored (June 2009) condition. The painting has had
minor professional restoration (also in June 2009). The original
mirror is in very good original
condition, showing minor age. Please see the images below that show
the mirror facing the blue
skies, to see mirror condition and close ups.
Please note: As with all of our
mirrors, the original mirror itself is left intact when possible.
Of course they can be re-silvered or replaced if you prefer a new
mirror. You may have this done
by your local glass shop, or we have this done for you, for an
additional fee, by our glass shop.
FADM140: Price: $
9,800.
Additional
photos below:
Additional photos below show the mirror facing the blue sky, to show
age on the mirror:
