E-24: French Salon of the Louis XVI Period, c. 1780
SEE IT IN PERSON
● On view now — Gallery 11
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · verified July 2026
Discussion
FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG
Mrs. Thorne designed this interior “entirely in the spirit of Marie Antoinette—dainty in coloring and full of her symbols of design.” The queen was fond of roses, which were often incorporated into the molded decorations of swags, garlands, and baskets in rooms such as this one. The garden tools and musical instruments in the carvings of the panel heads represent her love of nature and music. Speaking of the Petit Trianon, whose private rooms inspired this salon, Mrs. Thorne wrote, “Nothing could be more chaste, more restrained. This was Marie Antoinatte's favorite retreat and it is here that I always feel her shadow.”
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More by Narcissa Niblack Thorne
E-21: French Boudoir of the Louis XV Period, 1740-60
E-26: French Anteroom of the Empire Period, c. 1810
E-23: French Dining Room of the Periods of Louis XV and Loui
E-28: German Sitting Room of the Biedermeier Period, 1815-50
E-25: French Bathroom and Boudoir of the Revolutionary Perio
A30: Georgia Double Parlor, c. 1850
E-19: French Dining Room of the Louis XIV Period, 1660-1700
E-18: French Salon of the Louis XIV Period, 1660-1700
