A two-day hybrid symposium organized by the Furniture History Society & the French Porcelain Society on Rococo ceramics and furniture across Europe and beyond, which aims to examine the geographical spread of the Rococo style, the interaction between designers and makers, and the significant role played by print culture in its dissemination. It will go beyond the traditional geographical, chronological and conceptual fields of Rococo design to explore how the style evolved throughout the long Eighteenth century, and reflect on wider discussions about the historical contexts for Rococo ceramics and furniture, alongside the place of the ‘Rococo’ in museums and art historical scholarship today.

PROGRAMME

Day One - Friday, 24th March
10.00 – Registration
10.20 - Welcome and Introduction
Dame Rosalind Savill DBE, FSA, FBA President of the French Porcelain Society
Session One – Origins and Circulation of the Rococo
Moderated by Helen Jacobsen
10.35 - Form versus Function – the Rococo Contradiction and its Application to French Eighteenth Century Decorative Arts
John Whitehead Independent Scholar
11.00 - The Diplomatic Gifts of Louis XV (Working Title)
Marie-Laure Buku-Pongo Assistant Curator of Decorative Arts, The Frick Collection, New York
11.25 – Break
11.50 - From Cathay to Paris: Trade with Asia, its Actors and its Influence on the Arts in Paris in the Eighteenth Century
Stéphane Castelluccio Directeur de recherche au CNRS, Centre André Chastel, Paris
12.15 -The Rococo Diaspora: Wandering Craftsmen, Objects, Patronage and Diplomacy
Sarah Coffin Independent Curator, Former Senior Curator - Cooper Hewitt Museum, New York
12.40 – Discussion
12.55 Lunch including ’Object in Focus Sessions’ with V&A Collections and Curators (Separate tickets required)
Session Two – Virtuoso Rococo: England and the Netherlands
Moderated by David Oakey
14.25 - ‘A Peculiarity in the Lines’: Drawing and Carving ‘Rococo’ in mid-Eighteenth Century England
Jenny Saunt Curatorial Research Fellow, Victoria and Albert Museum, London
14.50 - Chelsea's Extreme Rococo: A Perspicuous Misunderstanding or a Calculated Risk
Patricia Ferguson Independent Scholar
15.15 - Break (Tea/Coffee in the Painting Galleries)
15.45 - Designing or Making. On the Role of Craftsmen as Designers
Reinier Baarsen Curator Emeritus of Decorative Arts at the Rijksmuseum
16.10 - Rococo Silver in the Austrian Netherlands: A Virtuoso Kaleidoscope?
Wim Nys Head of Collections and Research, DIVA Museum, Antwerp
16.35 – Discussion
16.50 - Closing Remarks
17.00 - End of Day One
Ticket holders are invited to a Drinks Reception, supported by Bonhams, 6.00 - 7.30 PM on Friday 24th February at Montpelier St, London SW7 1HH. Spaces are limited so early booking is advised.

Day Two - Saturday, 25th March
10.00 - Registration
10.20 - Welcome and Introduction
Christopher Rowell FSA Chairman of the Furniture History Society
Session Three – Inspiration and Emulation: Ireland, Germany and Russia
Moderated by Caroline McCaffrey-Howarth
10.30 - The Prints of Carl Pier (b. 1717): Visions and Potentialities in Southern German Rococo Design
Michael Yonan Professor of Art History, University of California
10.55 - Frederician Furniture in Berlin and Potsdam, c. 1740-1775
Henriette Graf Curator of Furniture, Stiftung Preußische Schlösser und Gärten Berlin-Brandenburg
11.20 - Break
11.50 -The Englishness of Irish Rococo: The Dublin School of Stucco Workers
Conor Lucey Associate Professor in Architectural History, University College Dublin
12.15 - Pineau le Russe : A French Sculptor in Service to the Tsars
Turner Edwards Collaborateur Scientifique, Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris
12.40 – Discussion
12.55 Lunch
Session Four – Across the Seas: China, the Americas and back to France
Moderated by Adriana Turpin
14.25 - Persistence, Resistance, and Canadian Rococo Furniture
Philippe Halbert Curator of American Decorative Arts at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford
14.50 - Ornaments from the Western Ocean: Rococo - as a Qing Imperial Style in the Decorative Arts
Mei Mei Rado Assistant Professor, History of Textiles, Dress, and Decorative Arts, Bard Graduate Center, New York
15.15 - Break (Tea/Coffee in the Painting Galleries)
15.45 - The French Rococo Style in Colonial Latin America
Dennis Carr Virginia Steele Scott Chief Curator of American Art, Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, Los Angeles
16.10 - Colonial Fantasy and Rococo Regressions: Porcelain in the Time of Louis-Philippe
Iris Moon Assistant Curator of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
16.35 – Discussion
16.50 – Closing Remarks
17.00 - End of Day Two

Tickets on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rococo-across-borders-designers-makers-tickets-519081104557