History 1: French Period

Louis XIV was a style of design that was named after the obvious, King Louis XIV, and was proclaimed king at the age of five! He created a national style of art with the help of Jean Baptiste Colbert, a French statesman. Under the king, Colbert enforced a lot of different art regulation. This included that of venetian glassmakers, Flemish weavers, French workmen could not emigrate, the enforcement of textile regulations, and the organization of the Academy of painting and sculpture.

Vaux Le Vicomte

This home was owned by Nicolas Fouquet, who was the Superintendent of Finances under King Louis XIV. This man renovated the original structure to host thousands of guests as well as the King. However, the impressive structure was so impressive that when the King was invited, he thought that he used funds from where he was in charge of the finances. So with this in mind the King imprisoned him for life and exiled Fouquet's wife. The King purchased a lot of arts, tapestries, and orange trees from Vaux Le Vicomte, so that they would be used for an even grander place.

The Vaux Le Vicomte included:

105 lavish rooms
170 acres of garden
Persian Carpets
Crystal Chandeliers
Gold Clocks
Silver vases
Entertained 6,000 guests

This structure was the first major project that incorporated multiple designers of different fields, this was what made Louis XIV's style what it was. The designers included Louis Le Vau the architect, Andre Le Notre garden designer, Charles LeBrun painter, and Puget sculptor.