Four designs for decorative patters featuring foliage, flowers, and scrolls 1830 - 1897

Jules-Edmond-Charles Lachaise created this drawing of four decorative patterns featuring foliage, flowers and scrolls using graphite on paper. The composition presents a set of formal arrangements, each defined by its unique interplay of organic motifs and geometric structure. The upper designs exhibit symmetry and repetition, where floral elements and scrolling vines are rendered with precision. These patterns suggest a rhythmic cadence through their balanced distribution, evoking a sense of order and classical harmony. In contrast, the lower designs introduce angularity. Each corner design employs a combination of curved and straight lines to create a sense of dynamism and enclosure. Here, Lachaise seems to engage with the semiotic function of ornamentation itself, where stylized natural forms act as signs within a larger cultural discourse of beauty and design. This functions not merely as an aesthetic exercise, but also as an exploration of how we structure and interpret the visual world around us.