Salon met schouw 1767

This delicate print shows a salon with a mantelpiece, made by Jean François de Neufforge in the 18th century. Though made on paper, it depicts a space constructed from expensive materials – stone, wood, perhaps some gilding. Look closely at the imagined architecture. Notice how every surface is enriched by decoration – carving, molding, and figuration. This effect speaks to the labor involved, as each detail would have been painstakingly produced by skilled artisans. The design represents the height of elite taste in the period, a demonstration of status through material display. Such spaces declared the owner’s wealth and power, as well as their aspirations to culture. Neufforge captured this through the skillful manipulation of line, which brings out the richness of the decor. Prints like this were essential to the circulation of design ideas. They reveal how luxury was conceived, produced, and consumed in the 1700s.