Lacquered furniture has a very long tradition and still today represent elements of furniture of great charm. Bright and often colored, lacquered furniture can give prestige and value to any room in which they are placed.
The lacquered furniture can present various decorations that make them precious and unique, such as gold or silver inlays, carvings with floral motifs, sculptures, paintings.
The characteristic that makes them unique is the fact that they do not let themselves be scratched with time, thanks to the art of lacquering.
The technique of lacquering
The art of lacquering was born in East Asia: artisans used it to decorate objects with resins colored with charcoal or cinnabar, a red color. These objects reach Europe especially during the seventeenth century and still continue to be widespread today.
The process of lacquering involved the laying of various layers of paint, being careful to the total absence of dust. The surface obtained after drying the different layers of paint is smooth, hard and shiny. In particular, the lacquering of Venetian furniture is distinguished by being thicker than that of Genoese or Piedmontese furniture.
In Italy the most used woods for lacquered furniture were those of stone pine or Cirmolo or nine.
After the lacquering, the decoration followed.
Venetian lacquered furniture
Venice reworks the technique in a personal way, making the Venetian lacquered furniture unmistakable. This was made possible by the skilled craftsmen, called depentori, who worked with painting and gilding.
The magnificence of the Venetian lacquer is manifested during the years of the Rococo, in these years the furnishings lose weight to take instead slender forms, also thanks to decoration articulated and airy with squiggles and curls.
Unmistakable is the chrome plating of Venetian lacquers that moves from blue lathes to shades of cream yellow, but also bright reds and greens.
Aristocratic families and wealthy Venetian merchants began to commission lacquered furniture to decorate their villas, furniture that perfectly embodied the Rococo spirit.
The Venetian lacquered furniture, in particular the drawers, are in fact characterized by a triumph of curves and sinuosity, all finished with lacquered decorations by the hand of the so-called marangoni, the carpenters.
Antichità Giglio offers a free furniture evaluation service, whether it is individual objects or entire collections. To receive an evaluation, simple, professional and fast, send photos on Whatsapp to the number 335-63.79.151 or write an email to info@antichitagiglio.it. The estimate is free and non-binding.
