Friday, July 18, 2014

Sanssouci details

While summertime 'downtime' (obviously) continues on this blog I thought I'd share some images my Australian penpal was nice enough to share with me of Sanssouci.
 I've blogged about the rococo palace in the past (here and here) and it never gets old.
 While this style may not interest you the attention to detail cannot fail to impress.
 This collection of porcelain on gilded brackets above reminded me of Howard Slatkin's NYC apartment.
 Notice the very successful jib door (closed) to the left of the chairs in the guest room above.
The chairs have a very modern looking ikat type fabric. Many of the fabrics and wallpapers were recently replaced by a company in Lyon.
 I especially love the blue version. Notice the matching curtains.
 Here you see the same fabric in green to match a green guestroom.
 The marquetry work in this small cabinet is amazing. These side chairs sport a more expected silk damask.
My favorite room at Sanssoci, as I've said in previous posts, is surely the Voltaire guest room which he inhabited for a time.
 The polychromed boiserie are so fun and cheerful.
 Birds and fruits sit next to monkeys and parrots - could it be more whimsical?
 Notice the very modern looking grotto-esque icicles at the top of the mirror.
 The parrots almost look entirely free standing on their brackets.
 The wallpapers are also a riot of pattern and color.
Notice the intriguing electrical switch below which blends right into the paper. Of course in the 18th century they wouldn't have had any switches so it's nice to hide them.
 Again with the modern fabrics, doesn't this fabric below remind you of something from the 1950s?
I hope you enjoy these delicious detail shots of Sanssoci Palace!

8 comments:

Dean Farris said...

Fantastic !

Love this post!

Dean

ArchitectDesign™ said...

Thanks Dean! it's all about the details...

M. Denise C. said...

Phenomenal! Love the parrots.

Stephilius said...

All so charming. While I don't deeply love the Rococo - my real love is the Neoclassical, design history's "next big thing" - I'm so grateful that Sanssouci and the whole ensemble at Potsdam - which includes plenty of exquisite examples of the Neoclassical, certainly - has (unexpectedly, improbably) survived so well. : )

Hels said...

I also rarely enjoy Rococo and find the parrots and flower trails on the walls were way over the top. Ditto the marquetry work on the small cabinet.

But free standing objects that could be moved around...gave specific spaces for decoration and were much more effective. The porcelain pots and chairs are gorgeous.

Karena said...

Stefan I can never get enough of such glorious details!

Have a great weekend!

xoxo
Karena
The Arts by Karena
Europe: Simply Irresistible

Row homes and Cobblestones said...

You always show the most interesting places Stefan.
This one is opulence on steroids! I'd expect one of the parrots to fly off the wall ... Whimsical, yes! Ornate design flawlessly done, I think after I toured this place I would need to rest my eyes though.
Happy weekend,
Vera

Mark D. Ruffner said...

Hi, Stefan,

Isn't it great that more museums and historic sites are allowing digital photography?

My pick of these rooms is the Voltaire Guest Room. That polychroming would certainly lend itself to chinoiserrie.