Secretary

ca. 1770

Pietro Piffetti Italian, 1700-1777

On View

Fashionable Living, Level 3, South Wing

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About the Artwork

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

Cabinetmaker to the Sardinian royal family in Turin, Piffetti was one of the most original and virtuoso furniture makers of eighteenth-century Europe. His furniture forms, conceived as sculptural fantasies, emphasize exuberant curves and an energetic interplay of solid and void. He is equally well known for sophisticated marquetry decorations, combining exotic woods, such as Brazilian kingwood, with ivory and mother-ofpearl, creating a sensuous contrast of color and surface. The restrained diamond-pattern parquetry on this desk is embellished by ivory rosettes in the interstices and by ebony and ivory stringing that outlines the form. Piffetti's extravagant furniture embodies the Italian interpretation of the rococo, marked by unrestrained animation and fantastic invention.

Title Secretary

Artwork Date ca. 1770

Artist Pietro Piffetti

Life Dates 1700-1777

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. Italian

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. ----------

Medium Kingwood, ivory, and ebony on wood carcass, mirrors

Dimensions Overall (by sight): 88 in. × 33 3/4 in. × 18 in. (223.5 × 85.7 × 45.7 cm)

Classification Furniture

Department European Sculpture and Dec Arts

Credit Founders Society Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Foundation Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 73.167

Markings

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Provenance

Louis Huth.
Mrs. R. E. Underdown (London, England);
1972, sold at auction (Christie, Manson & Woods, 30 Nov. 1972, lot 86, London, England);
T. Rogers.
(W. Apolloni, dealer, Rome, Italy);
1973-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

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Published References

"Objects of Art and Clocks." Fine French and Continental Furniture, Tapestries, Eastern Rugs and Carpets. Sales cat., Christie, Manson & Woods. London, November 3, 1972, lot 86.

Pedrini, A. Il Mobilio: Gli Ambienti E Le Decorazioni Nei Secoli Xvii E Xviii In Piemonte. Turin, 1973, (fig. 317).

“Family Art Game.” Detroit News, April 10, 1983, p. 26 (ill.) [DIA Advertising Supplement].

Antonetto, R. Minusieri Ed Ebanisti Del Piemonte: Storia E Immagini Del Mobile Piemontese 1636-1844. Turin, 1985, p. 330, (fig. 494).

Gonzalez-Palacios, A. Il Tempio Del Gusto: Le Arti Decor- Ative In Italia Fra Classicismi E Barocco: Il Gran- Ducato Di Toscana E Gli Stati Settentrionali. Milan, 1986, vol. 1, pp. 382-385, (color pl. LX); vol. 2, (figs. 849-851).

Ferraris, Giancarlo. Pietro Pifetti e gli Ebanisti a Torino 1670-1838. Turin, 1993, pp. 142-143.

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Pietro Piffetti, Secretary, ca. 1770, kingwood, ivory, and ebony on wood carcass, mirrors. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, Robert H. Tannahill Foundation Fund, 73.167.