Armchair c. 1775

This "Armchair" was created by Jean-Baptiste II Tilliard sometime in the 18th century. Notice the chair’s ornate carvings and the luxurious, patterned fabric that gives it a regal appearance. The visual experience is one of opulence, yet also of restraint. The gilded wooden frame displays a delicate balance between robust form and subtle ornamentation. The fabric is a field of interwoven floral and foliate forms. It is a surface design that invites closer inspection, revealing the meticulous craftsmanship valued in 18th-century French furniture. The overall composition, with its emphasis on symmetry and proportion, reflects classical ideals of beauty and order. What we must consider is how this object operates as both functional furniture and as a symbol of social status and artistic taste. This armchair, with its structural elegance and decorative excess, invites us to consider the complex interplay between form and function, utility and representation.