The Kunstgewerbemuseum der Staatlichen Kunstsammlungen Dresden (SKD) is showing furniture by cabinetmaker Jean-Pierre Latz (1691-1754) for the first time since the end of the Second World War. He is considered one of the most important masters in his field at the time.
For the exhibition "Fait à Paris. The Art Furniture of Jean-Pierre Latz at the Dresden Court", the showrooms in the Residenzschloss will be redesigned in an unusual way, as announced by the SKD. The show will open on October 19 and will be on display until February 2, 2025.
Furniture had already fallen into oblivion
The Saxon Elector Augustus II - son of Augustus the Strong - and his Prime Minister Heinrich Count von Brühl had Latz's luxurious creations delivered directly from Paris to the Saxon court as status symbols. Some of the furniture was removed during the Second World War; others remained in the palace and were badly damaged during the bombing of the city. They were later considered war losses.
According to the art collections, the Latz furniture was stored in the SKD depots in the post-war period due to its condition and was eventually forgotten. It was only the introduction of the Daphne museum database, which was used to inventory the SKD's entire collection from 2008, that led to their rediscovery.
International research project in the run-up to the exhibition
The furniture was restored for the exhibition as part of an international research and restoration project over the past few years. The restorers also discovered handwritten signatures with the words "Fait à Paris" - "made in Paris", they said.
France's ambassador to Germany, François Delattre, is the patron of the exhibition.
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