CHARLES PLUMET (1861-1928) & TONY SELMERSHEIM (1871-1971) ART NOUVEAU HIGH BUFFET WITH FLORAL DECORATION, CIRCA 1900

The high buffet signed by Charles Plumet and Tony Selmersheim, in mahogany with scrolled cornice and floral decoration, opens in the central part with three glass doors, three drawers with finely worked metal handles and an arched niche at the bottom; the two sides open with two glass doors at the top, two niches and two sculpted doors with floral decoration at the bottom. H. 240 cm, W. 360 cm, D. 50 cm Tony Selmersheim (1871-1971) was a renowned cabinetmaker of the Art Nouveau period. Charles Plumet (1861-1928), an architect from Eugène Bruneau's studio, had already designed four major buildings in Paris around 1893, when he probably met Tony Selmersheim. In 1895, the architect and cabinetmaker set up their own company to devote themselves to the necessary renewal of architecture and the decorative arts. In 1852, Aristide Boucicaut and his wife Marguerite transformed a simple shop into a ‘cathedral of modern commerce’ and a ‘temple of fine arts’, making Le Bon Marché the first of the Parisian department stores.