Wilfried Zeisler

Monumental in scale and rich in detail, Konstantin Makovsky's stunning paintings epitomize the charm of Old Russia. His early career blossomed in late 19th-century St. Petersburg, where he became painter to the Tsar's court. His popularity soon spread far beyond Russia. He lived and worked in Paris and then America, where he and his paintings acquired celebrity status. This beautifully illustrated book, the first full survey of Makovsky's career in English, positions his work at the crossroads between late Imperial St. Petersburg, Belle-Epoque Paris and Gilded Age America. Three great canvases celebrating Russia's traditional aristocratic wedding customs unify this survey: A Boyar Wedding Feast (1883), Choosing the Bride (1887), and The Russian Bride's Attire (1889). All are explored through outstanding photography, including close-up details. Four essays trace the career of this Russian artist eager for international fame. Wendy Salmond begins by establishing the Russian milieu. Russell E. Martin highlights the historical sources, artefacts and costumes which Makovsky used to create his scenes of 17th-century life. Wilfried Zeisler reveals the artist's little-known Paris period, and also explores his paintings inspired by visits to the Middle East and North Africa. Finally Wendy Salmond investigates America's enthusiastic reception of Makovsky's paintings. AUTHOR: Wendy Salmond is professor of art and art history, Chapman University, Orange, CA Wilfried Zeisler is the associate curator of 19th-century art, Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens, Washington, DC Russell E. Martin is professor of history, Westminster College, New Wilmington, PA 130 colour illustrations

Based on previously unpublished documents, this book traces the life in Paris of Countess Olga von Hohenfelsen, later known as Princess Paley, the morganatic wife of Grand Duke Paul of Russia, uncle of the last emperor, Nicholas II. While immersing the reader in the world of Marcel Proust (most of Princess Paley's social contacts had fed the writer's imagination), the book explores the couple's day-to-day life, highlighting their relationships with leading suppliers such as couturiers Worth and Paquin and the jeweller Cartier. It also provides an overview of the Parisian art market, and studies the development of the couple's successive residences from Paris to St. Petersburg. For a time in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, the significant collection and the palace built to house it were shown to the public as the Museum of French Art and History. Dispersed during the 1920s by the Soviet authorities, the collection is studied as a whole here for the first time. Published first in French in 2018, this updated English version includes an additional chapter on Princess Natalie Paley, as many works of art and archival documents from the family are now preserved at Hillwood Estate, Museum & Gardens. The couple's youngest child, Natalie Paley continued her family's legacy of contributing to culture and the arts well into the 20th century while living in Paris and the United States, where she was more than a muse to writers, designers, photographers, and artists, whom she influenced.

Marjorie Merriweather Post was an extraordinary person for her time, not only for being the head of a major US corporation but also for overseeing elegant and well-run residences and amassing collections of astounding beauty. Encompassing portraiture, imperial Russian tableware, Faberge creations, stunning garments and jewellery, books, and rare objects in gold, silver, enamel, porcelain, ivory, and glass, Post s works of art were acquired with intelligence and savvy. As a collector, she was inspired by past royal and aristocratic patrons as well as countries that she adored: France, Russia, England, and Austria. This publication illustrates the evolution of Post s collections, as well as her interaction with a multitude of designers, dealers, artists, artisans, and architects with whom she worked. The backdrops for her treasures residences in New York (a 54-room triplex apartment), the Adirondacks (Camp Topridge), Palm Beach (Mar-A-Lago), Washington DC (Hillwood), and on Long Island, among others are depicted with period and newly commissioned photography. Post was actively involved with the international art world of her time, and her taste and lifestyle had an effect on her family members and many admirers. Recent scholarship focusing on the highlights of her trove of exquisite objects, including Western European and Russian paintings, decorative arts, jewellery, and costume, shed new light on Post s legacy as a twentieth-century collector.

The firm of Faberge, jeweller to the Russian court, was founded in St. Petersburg in 1842. Expanded by the founder's son, Peter Carl Faberge (1846-1920), the firm became one of the most famous jewellers of the late 19th to early 20th centuries. Major American collectors, such as Marjorie Merriweather Post, played a significant role in Faberge's fame after the fall of the imperial regime, and her mansion at Hillwood in Washington, DC now has a collection that includes two imperial Easter eggs, silver, jewellery, hardstone, and religious items. With new photography, exquisite works of art and illuminating focus spreads by Faberge experts, this new volume presents the firm in the broader history of nineteenth to twentieth century jewellery and goldsmithing, and documents new attributions and provenances.