Directoire Side Chairs
Formed in the wake of the Jacobin Reign of Terror’s bloody guillotine, the Directoire was established to lead France into order through the leadership of a five-member council of directors. It was brief, lasting only from 1795 to 1799, ending with Napoléon Bonaparte’s coup d’état, and was economically tumultuous. Yet it was an essential bridge between the era of Louis XVI and the elaborate Empire style that followed, with Directoire furniture and decorative arts shaped by a royal passion for classical design and an enthusiasm for postrevolutionary France.
Much of the country’s furniture production had halted during the French Revolution when the furniture guilds system was abolished, but during the Directoire period, the cabinetmakers restarted their businesses, such as François-Honoré-Georges and Jacob-Desmalter who established a new workshop called Jacob-Frères. Pieces made in walnut, elm, mahogany and other inexpensive materials incorporated influences ranging from Egypt to Pompeii, with popular forms including the curule armchair based on an ancient Roman design. The aesthetics of the transitional style were more austere than during the monarchy, with court cabinetmaker Jean-Baptiste Sené, for instance, reimagining his workshop’s neoclassical-style furniture with ungilded surfaces and a reduction of ornamentation.
Symbols referencing the revolutionary tenets of liberty, equality and fraternity were frequently carved into Directoire furnishings, such as the Phrygian cap, clasped hands and the fasces, which is an image of a bound bundle of sticks adopted from the Roman Republic, where it was seen as an emblem of strength through unity.
Elements of the French Directoire style continued through Empire style. Designers Charles Percier and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine are credited today as major proponents of both movements. The classically inspired furniture design is represented in pieces such as the boat-shaped daybed and the klismos chair, which endured in French interiors as well as in styles abroad, including American Directoire.
Find a collection of antique Directoire chairs, tables, daybeds, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
18th Century Italian Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Textile, Wood
18th Century Italian Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Mohair, Wood
Late 18th Century Italian Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Fruitwood
Early 20th Century French Directoire Side Chairs
Maple
Early 20th Century French Directoire Side Chairs
Wood
Mid-20th Century French Directoire Side Chairs
Marble, Bronze
1790s French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Maple
1940s French Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Wood, Upholstery
1790s French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Brass
1810s French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Cherry
1790s Belgian Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Wood
Early 1800s French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Brass
Early 1800s French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Leather, Mahogany
20th Century Directoire Side Chairs
Rush, Maple
1810s German Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Fruitwood
1950s American Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Rattan
1950s French Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Upholstery, Paint, Beech
Late 19th Century English Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Mahogany
1960s American Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Wood
Mid-18th Century Dutch Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Walnut
1950s English Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Silk, Upholstery, Cherry
1760s British Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Elm
1950s French Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Steel
Late 19th Century French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Ormolu
1970s American Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Fabric, Cane, Wood
18th Century French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Paint, Wood, Velvet
1970s Italian Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Upholstery, Beech
19th Century French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
19th Century French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Velvet, Wood
Mid-20th Century French Directoire Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 20th Century French Directoire Side Chairs
Leather, Wood
20th Century Directoire Side Chairs
Wood, Leather, Upholstery
19th Century Swedish Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Linen, Wood, Giltwood
1970s French Vintage Directoire Side Chairs
Walnut
Late 18th Century French Antique Directoire Side Chairs
Wood, Mohair
Mid-20th Century Directoire Side Chairs
Giltwood
Late 20th Century Directoire Side Chairs
Leather, Walnut