Narcissa Niblack Thorne

E-22: French Provincial Bedroom of the Louis XV Period, 18th Century

c. 1937
Miniature room, mixed media
49.5 × 44.5 cm (19.5 × 17.5 in)

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● On view now — Gallery 11

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · verified July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

"This bedroom of a country house in Normandy represents the provincial interpretation of the style of Louis XV," wrote Mrs. Thorne. She intended this interior to show the way in which a growing middle class outside of Paris adapted some of the innovations in comfort and style characteristic of Louis XV's reign for their relatively modest homes. A striving for beauty is demonstrated in the richly carved armoire against the left wall and in the sprigged wallpaper supplementing the paneling of the back wall.

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