PERCIER (Charles), Pierre-François-Léonard... - Lot 18 - Pescheteau-Badin

PERCIER (Charles), Pierre-François-Léonard FONTAINE, [Claude-Louis BERNIER and Léon DUFOURNY]. Palaces, houses and other modern buildings, drawn in Rome. Paris, chez les auteurs, et P. Didot l'aîné, [1802]. In-folio, wide-margin copy, red long-grained morocco, spine partitioned and decorated with geometric latticework, gilt frame of geometric motifs and vegetal friezes with gilt coat of arms in center, roulette decorating coupes and chasses, blue tabis linings and endpapers, gilt edges (period binding). 8-3-(one blank)-40 pp. slightly rubbed binding with worn corners. SECOND edition, the original of which had appeared without authors' names in deliveries by Ducamp from 1798 to 1801. The text has been entirely recomposed, with minimal editorial changes, and one engraved vignette has been relocated. ILLUSTRATION ENGRAVED ON COPPER hors texte: 99 plates bearing 100 copperplates numbered 1 to 100 (with nos. 12 and 13 on the same sheet) and 16 titles illustrated with fictitious architectural and ornamental compositions. 3 vignettes in the text, including one stamped on the printed title. MODERN" ROME REVISITED. The result of a stay in Rome by the architects Percier, Fontaine and Bernier, from 1786 to 1791, this superb collection brings together perspective views drawn by Fontaine, frontispieces composing architectural and ornamental elements in sumptuous fictitious views, imagined by Percier, and geometrical plans drawn by Bernier; printed historical notes were provided by the architect Dufourny. The work is mainly devoted to Roman Renaissance architecture, but does not neglect the Middle Ages or the Baroque period, and covers buildings of various sizes and natures: major and more modest palaces, even simple houses, and a few churches. "UNE RUPTURE DANS LA THEORIE DE L'ARCHITECTURE" (Jean-Philippe Garric). Unlike earlier catalogs of ancient buildings, which were simply juxtapositions of examples such as those by Bibiena, Ferrerio or Vasi, Percier and Fontaine's selection here is dictated by an overarching purpose that obeys specific criteria, a geometrically idealized stylization, sometimes involving transformations, retrenchments and recompositions far removed from documentary accuracy. In addition, the frontispieces of the issues were given a special status, demonstrating an art of ornamentation, and one of them was modeled on the churches of the Eastern Empire. In their creative abundance, Percier's eclectic compositions depend on Piranesi's compositions, but depart from them with a refined design that reconstructs an idealized Antiquity. Aimed at a wider audience of artists and enthusiasts, Palais, maisons, et autres édifices modernes, dessinés à Rome is the first in a series of collections published in France by Percier et Fontaine, Durand, Rondelet and Ledoux, which marked a major evolution in architectural concepts, in line with the expectations of the time, and inspired a whole generation of architects. FIRST PRINTED COLLABORATION BETWEEN PERCIER AND FONTAINE, WHO WERE TO BECOME THE OFFICIAL ARCHITECTS OF THE IMPERIAL REGIME. Charles Percier (1764-1838) and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine (1762-1853) met while studying in Paris with the architect Antoine-François Peyre, and spent time together in Italy from 1786 to 1790. On their return, Percier was appointed director of decorations at the Opéra, and Fontaine his deputy. In 1798, Fontaine was commissioned to work on the Château de Montgobert, recently acquired by General Leclerc and his wife Pauline Bonaparte. Their designs won over Bonaparte and Joséphine, and in 1802 they were entrusted with the development of Malmaison, with Percier designing and Fontaine executing. They went on to hold a number of official positions, including that of government architect, and worked together on a succession of projects: the staircase of the Louvre colonnade, decorations for major festivals including the coronation, the Carrousel triumphal arch, the rue de Rivoli, fitting out the imperial apartments in the Crown palaces, etc. - They were also in demand from foreign clients. The fall of the Empire put an end to their great ambitions, and they had to abandon their project for a palace for the King of Rome, son of Napoleon I. Fontaine continued his official career under subsequent regimes, while Percier devoted himself fully to teaching. IN THE END, THEY EXERTED AN IMMENSE INFLUENCE, THROUGH THEIR CONCRETE CREATIONS AND PUBLICATIONS, AND, INDEPENDENTLY, PERCIER THROUGH HIS TEACHING AND FONTAINE THROUGH HIS POSITION AS ADVISOR TO THE SOVEREIGNS. Claude-Louis Bernier (1755-183