Hi all,
I am a graduate student in conservation from France, at the Institut national du patrimoine (Inp). As part of my master's thesis, I am currently working on a glazed lavastone fireplace surround, by French architect Hector Guimard. This work is part of the Musee d'Orsay collection.
During my research, I was able to locate a very similar, if not identical model of another fireplace surround. Though this one is missing its top central element, it does not seem fragmentary nor suffers from any loss. This mantlepiece was part of British collector John Scott's collection, which was sold in 2014 by the Fine Art Society, London. They were not able to provide me with a buyer's name, but mentionned it was an American institution.
I have been desperately trying to identify and locate these elements for the past months, but remain unsuccessful so far. I checked several museums' databases I am aware of that keep some Guimard works (Cooper-Hewitt, MoMA, MET, Toledo, VMFA, PMA, DIA).
So this post is a message in a bottle for anyone that could be of any help in locating them. That would be a HUGE help in my conservation project. I remain available for any questions or additional information if need be. Do not hesitate to get in touch!
Best,
Simon
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Simon Laroche
Graduate student in conservation
Institut National Du Patrimoine Dept Restaurateurs - Bibliotheque
Saint-Denis La Plaine
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