Pair of movement armchairs in carved and gilded molded wood - Lot 376

Pair of movement armchairs in carved and gilded molded wood with openwork rocailles decoration. Curved back, sinuous arms and legs. Italian work, late 19th century. H. 113 cm. L. 66 cm. D. 55 cm (Damage, wear to gilding) - SHABBY CHIC, AN ART OF LIVING BETWEEN PATINE ELEGANCE AND THE SOFTNESS OF TIME Born in the UK in the 1980s and popularized in the 1990s, the Shabby Chic style has established itself as a singular aesthetic, at the crossroads of English romanticism and the spirit of the family home. Its name, literally "worn chic", evokes this subtle alliance between refinement and simplicity, elegance and authenticity. Stemming from a trend driven by a taste for revisited antique furniture, Shabby Chic is based on the art of bringing together the traces of time and contemporary comfort. Peeling paint, delicately wiped patinas, bleached woods, gilded wrought iron and faded fabrics all combine to recreate the luminous, soothing atmosphere of an English country house or a reinvented Provencal interior. Colors come in muted golds, off-whites, pearl grays, powdered beiges and faded blues, forming a soft, enveloping palette. The collector behind the ensemble presented here had turned his apartment into a veritable showcase of Shabby Chic. Each piece of furniture and each object had been carefully chosen to harmonize subtly: tables and consoles with gilding and patina paintings, comfortable chairs with linen upholstered seats and backs, antique mirrors with quilted sheen, gilded metal light fittings. The whole ensemble forms a rare unity, both warm and refined, testifying to a sensitive and coherent aesthetic quest. This taste for the "beautiful lived-in" that enhances the mark of time without freezing it gives these pieces a timeless charm. Shabby Chic, more than a decorative style, is an art of living, an invitation to softness, memory and the poetry of everyday life. This set perfectly reflects this spirit, at once romantic, authentic and imbued with understated elegance.