Le Style Louis Xv

Characterised by the dominance of the curved line, the rocaille style, more commonly known as the "Louis XV style", flourished in France between the 1720s and the 1760s. Touching all art forms, it was particularly prominent in the complementary fields of interior design and decorative arts.

Cabinetmakers, carpenters, sculptors, goldsmiths, bronze manufacturers, locksmiths, porcelain, earthenware, silk and tapestry manufacturers and many other trades adopted the forms and figures created by the fertile imagination of the ornamentalists, who were inspired by nature, particularly the aquatic and mineral worlds.

Through numerous illustrations, this book by Yves Carlier, General Curator of Heritage and Deputy Director of the Museum at the Château de Versailles, sets out to explain the different expressions of this style, as well as its different phases.