CHARLES PLUMET (1861-1928) & TONY SELMERSHEIM (1871-1971)

CHARLES PLUMET (1861-1928) & TONY SELMERSHEIM (1871-1971) ART NOUVEAU ‘IRIS’ LIVING ROOM, 8 pieces mahogany salon with mouldings, carvings and openwork of iris flowers, with original silk trim and silk embroidery with iris motif stamp ‘Au Bon Marché/ Maison Aristide Boucicaut/Tapisserie Ameublement’ (on the underside) Comprising : 1 bench 95 x 57 x 126 cm 1 armchair 96 x 64 x 57 cm 4 chairs 91 x 43 x 50 cm 2 music chairs 91 x 38 x 44.5 cm Provenance: possibly Jean-Claude Brialy (1933 - 2007), French actor, director, screenwriter and writer; Private collection, France Tony Selmersheim (1871-1971) was a renowned Art Nouveau cabinetmaker. Charles Plumet (1861-1928), an architect from Eugène Bruneau's studio, had already designed four major buildings in Paris around 1893, when he probably met Tony Selmersheim. In 1895, the architect and cabinetmaker set up their own company to devote themselves to the necessary renewal of architecture and the decorative arts. In 1852, Aristide Boucicaut and his wife Marguerite transformed a simple shop into a ‘cathedral of modern commerce’ and a ‘temple of fine arts’, making Le Bon Marché the first of the Parisian department stores.