Modernist display case, circa 1900

Modernist display case, circa 1900.
Carved wood, glass, and metal.
Two-part structure.
The display cabinet is electrified and equipped with three wooden shelves.
It has minor chips and scratches.
The keys are missing, so the display cases cannot be opened.
Measurements: 236 cm (total height); 135 x 94 x 33 cm (upper section); 98 x 95.5 x 48 cm (lower section).

A display cabinet with a pronounced verticality, designed by superimposing a glass-fronted lower section over an upper structure intended for displaying objects. The alternation of closed compartments, drawers, and small shelves creates a dynamic interplay of solids and voids, a departure from the rigidity of historicist furniture. The crown molding, side profiles, and plant motifs reveal the characteristic Modernist “coup de fouet,” based on taut, fluid, and asymmetrical curves that lend energy and continuity to the whole.

The lower section features a wide circular front set within a rectangular structure, a design choice that adds movement to the composition. The carved ornamentation is concentrated at the corners and along the lower section, where sinuous plant motifs are combined with stylized metal inlays. The upper section is organized around a display case topped by an undulating profile and crowned with carved floral elements. On one side are two drawers and several shelves connected by openwork supports with curvilinear lines.

The combination of wood, glass, and metal, together with the emphasis placed on organic lines and plant motifs, places the piece within the fin-de-siècle Modernist style.