Object Type
Thomas Hope commissioned this vase of patinated copper with ormolu (gilt-bronze) mounts for his London mansion at Duchess Street, where it was displayed in the dining room. It is based on a classical volute (spiral scroll) 'krater', an ancient Greek vase with two handles that was used for mixing wine and water. Hope's own account of the precise source was 'a vase of white marble' in the Museum at Portici, Italy.
Materials & Making
The maker was a French bronze and ormolu (gilded bronze) manufacturer named Alexis Decaix who came to London as a refugee from the French Revolution. He worked for the well-known silversmith Garrards as an ormolu maker and produced a range of gilt bronzes between 1799 and 1804 for aristocratic clients including the Prince of Wales. The contrasting use of matt gilding and burnished (polished) gilding is a feature of this vase. The technique highlights the detailed decoration of the vase and was used by the celebrated Parisian ormolu makers Pierre Gouthière (1732-1813) and Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1751-1843).
Places
Hope's mansion in Duchess Street was an outstanding example of Neo-classical design. In 1807 he published an illustrated account of the house and its furnishings in. Entitled Household Furniture and Interior Decoration..., it had a considerable influence on other architects and designers working in the Greek Revival style.
Physical description
Vase, patinated copper with ormolu (gilt-brass) mounts, 59 cm high, 33.5 cm diam. Detachable flat lid. Based on the Greek krater form decorated with masks from Greek mythology.
Place of Origin
London, England (probably, made)
Date
1802-1803 (made)
Artist/maker
Hope, Thomas, born 1769 - died 1831 (designer)
Decaix, Alexis (probably, maker)
Materials and Techniques
Copper, treated to resemble bronze, with applied ormolu (gilt bronze) mounts
Dimensions
Height: 59 cm, Width: 33.5 cm, Depth: 33.5 cm
Object history note
Designed by Thomas Hope (born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1769, died in London, 1831); probably made in London by Alexis Decaix (died in 1811)
Thomas Hope Exhibition RF.2005/610
Descriptive line
Vase, patinated copper with ormolu (gilt-brass) mounts, designed by Thomas Hope, made by Alexis Decaix, England, 1802-03
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Baker, Malcolm and Richardson, Brenda, eds. A Grand Design : The Art of the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: V&A Publications, 1997. 431 p., ill. ISBN 1851773088.
The revival of influential designer-collector-propagandist Thomas Hope's name and the Museum's acquisition of works designed by him form a significant part of the reevaluation of the Regency style that began among avant-garde collectors in the 1920s. When the contents of The Deepdene, Hope's country house in Surrey, were sold in 1917, their significance went unrecognised except by Edward Knoblock, the author of the musical Kismet. Knoblock's interest was shared by V&A curator H. Clifford Smith, who acquired some important Regency furniture for the Museum, including several pieces by Hope. Although interest waned in the postwar period, the collecting activities and publications of connoisseur Mario Praz led to Hope's work being featured prominently in the Council of Europe's "Age of Neo-Classicism" exhibition in 1972, part of which was presented at the Museum.
Based on the Greek krater form, this impressive vase is illustrated in Thomas Hope's Household Furniture and Interior Decoration Executed from Designs by Thomas Hope, published in 1807. In his introduction to the book, Hope describes how he employed Alexis Decaix-a bronzier and native of France-for "the more enriched portion" of his designs. This vase was made for Hope's London house, designed by Robert Adam, in Duchess Street (demolished in 1851), and was probably displayed in the dining room. The house was an outstanding example of Neoclassical design, and Hope's account of the house and its furnishings published in 1807 was a work of very considerable influence. The ormolu mounts are of extremely high quality and represent the work of a French bronzier at his best.
Lit. Chapman, 1985, p. 217; Wainwright, 1978
ANTHONY R. E. NORTH
Exhibition History
Thomas Hope: Regency Designer (Victoria and Albert Museum 06/03/2008-06/07/2008)
A Grand Design - The Art of the Victoria and Albert Museum (Victoria and Albert Museum 12/10/1999-16/01/2000)
Thomas Hope: Regency Designer (The Bard Graduate Center for Studies in the Decorative Arts 17/07/2008-16/11/2008)
Labels and date
British Galleries:
When Thomas Hope visited Naples in 1802, he sketched a Greek marble vase in the museum at Portici. He then used the sketch to design this vase for himself. A French metalworker living in London executed the work and it was displayed in the dining room of Hope's London house in Duchess Street. [27/03/2003]
Subjects depicted
Birds; Masks; Vines; Leaf scrolls; Classicism; Claw feet
Categories
Metalwork; Vases
Collection code
MET
