Christie’s presents
Au Bord Du Lac
Space: a boundless, three-dimensional extent in which objects and events occur and have relative position and direction.
With such a definition, it’s hard to see space as anything other than otherworldly, but we inhabit it in every moment of the humdrum of our lives: crossing the hallway to brush your teeth, shuffling through a subway station, peering at that topside of the windowsill that never gets dusted. Space, by and large, is actually pretty dull. This is why people like Francois–Joseph Graf are such essential artists.
Dubbed “The Don Quixote of Taste”, Francois–Joseph Graf is a renowned interior designer (among other things) who cut his teeth creating spaces that were anything but dull. In fact, they were magical. Throughout France and beyond, he married that irresistible, traditional French sense of style with a progressive zeal that has since become a staple itself. One of his earliest and most spectacular projects is Au Bord Du Lac, on the coast of Lake Geneva.
There are certain homes on this earth that are entire worlds unto themselves. Entering these portals, with their own atmospheres and ambiance, can feel like stepping out of your own idea of what space is. Even the air is different. It’s a rare privilege to be invited into such a home. Often they are guarded secrets, either handed down through posterity or purchased and designed by those with the resources to actualise an architectural pipedream. Privacy for both camps is, understandably, sacrosanct.
The contents of the home in question, Au Bord Du Lac, go live on auction in Christie’s on the 26th of January. The collection features French decorative arts, furniture and paintings, predominantly from the late 19th century. Each room had a distinct identity and aesthetic, created by Graf for his clients without slavishly adhering to a particular style or period. Graf combined luxurious materials such as lacquer and gilt-bronze with lustrous ceramics and glass and his own rich fabrics, which when brought together created a home that was both comfortable and opulent.
Highlights include a serene garden scene painted at Gerberoy in 1917 by Henri Le Sidaner, a group of ‘Japonisme’ furniture designed by Édouard Lièvre and Gabriel Viardot, an impressive collection of Art Nouveau ceramics by Pierre-Andrien Dalpayrat with innovative colourful glazes, and a suite of burgundy-japanned Aesthetic Movement room panelling painted with exotic birds used in the dining room.
This opportunity to add a spark to the space you inhabit is not to be missed. The sale is on public view at Christie’s in London from 20th to 25th January 2022.
