GRUZ, Hippolyte. Liege, Paris, Berlin, Ch. Clausen [1860]. First edition. Folio. pp44 + 61 plates (43 chromolithographs); some slight spotting to one or two leaves, but still a fine copy in original cloth-backed printed portfolio complete with original ties, lightly soiled. The middle of the nineteenth century saw the arrival of the nouveau riche in Europe and America. "These people were in particular need of guidance in many fields; not least in household management" [Thornton, Authentic Decor, p216]. Gruz was a painter decorator, who had worked with many of the leading Parisian architects: at Fontainebleau for Lefuel, Pierrefonds for Viollet-le-Duc, and for Visconti at the Tuilieries. This magnificent pattern book gives an overview of the popular styles of interior decoration. The beautifully executed chromolithographed plates, showing ceilings, doors, panels, walls, hangings, etc. embodies "the new concern with colourful effects indoors rendered in paintwork that consciously complemented the architecture" [ibid p222]. The remaining eighteen plates (also coloured) are of decorative motifs of earlier classical styles. It is significant for an understanding of the manner in which such designs were spread that this handsome and large publication was simultaneously published in Belgium, France and Germany.

£2500