A set of nine French Neoclassical polychrome-painted and carved bergères en gondole one circa 1765, three late 19th century and five of a later date

Supplied circa 1927-1930 by Elsie de Wolfe for the New York apartment of Condé Nast, the owner of Vogue Magazine
The Collection of Frederick P. Victoria and Son, sold Christie's New York, May 27, 1999, lot 38 ($34,500)

Josephine Ross, Society in Vogue, New York, 1992, p. 127.

All with age and construction cracks, abrasions to carving and dents. One with break to back. 18th-century piece with large cracks to back and sides and worm damage. All redecorated, paint now with losses, rubbing and surface dirt. In otherwise good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

These remarkable tub-shaped bergeres, with their stylish use of a flower-filled trellis combined with bold husk swags, were supplied in the late 1920's by the legendary interior decorator Elsie de Wolfe for the terrace of the Park Avenue penthouse of Vogue's proprietor, Cond Nast. Their bold neo-classical design, with a rich flower-filled trellis and husk swags, relates to designs for chairs by the influential got grec designer Jean-Franois de Neufforge (illustrated in B.G.B. Pallot, L'Art du Sige Au XVIIIe siecle en France, Paris, 1987, p. 172).

Elsie de Wolfe (1865-1950) was one of the most celebrated and innovative personalities in the field of interior design, and indeed was America's first female interior decorator, who early in her career pronounced that 'I am going to make everything around me beautiful. That will be my life'. An intimate of the Duchess of Windsor, her dazzling array of clients included Anne Vanderbilt and Henry Clay Frick (whose Fifth Avenue townhouse she decorated). The Cond Nast commission was one of her most celebrated decorating projects, and its daring combination of modern decorations and 18th century furniture with rich chinoiserie and floral wall treatments typified her ebullient approach. As a 1929 Vogue article on her own New York apartment remarked 'Throughout, old things have been used in the modern manner-a paradox that is extremely effective'.