Supplier of royal furniture from 1774 to 1784, Jean Henri Riesener, stands out for the quality and the impeccable line of his creations knowing to use both luxury and sobriety in his pieces, as typified by this elegant commode.
The present lot also exemplifies the enduring appeal and popularity of the then fashionable Anglomania. Riesener, Weisweiler, Canabas and also Pierre Garnier were marked by the 'English taste' and supplied furniture influenced by the 'goût anglais'. The present commode features various facets of this fashionable trend: the employment of mahogany of the highest quality, the sobriety of lines and sole use of mouldings to underline the architecture of the commode, as well as the impeccable quality of the execution.
For a comparable commode see that by Guillaume Benneman (1750-1811, maître in 1785), after a model by Riesener, in the collections at Versailles (Inv. V 4719).