Two-Tiered Table
Design Date 1900
Designer Émile Gallé (1846-1904, French)
Media wood with marquetry
Dimensions 30 1/2 x 21 x 21 inches
Émile Gallé was best-known as an Art Nouveau glassworker. He was a founder, along with fellow designer Louis Majorelle, of the École de Nancy in the small town of Nancy 200 miles southeast of Paris. The Art Nouveau designers of the École de Nancy were inspired by Japonisme (a Western take on the Japanese aesthetic) and nature—like all Art Nouveau designers—but were also influenced by Baroque and Rococo styles of the 17th and 18th centuries. This historical inspiration was unique to the Art Nouveau aesthetic of the École de Nancy. Above his studio entrance, Gallé inscribed a quote: “Ma Racine est au fond des Bois”, or “My Roots lie in the heart of the Forest”. This table incorporates naturalistic lines in its three legs, which branch off like flower stems. It also includes the tabletop’s inlaid wood marquetry that was especially popular in French Art Nouveau design.
ON VIEW in Art Nouveau Gallery 4
Markings unmarked
Credit Line Collection Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art
Accession Number 2011.0957
