Marcel Boulanger was a French sculptor and interiors artist who was in demand during the

Belle Époque The Belle Époque () or La Belle Époque () was a period of French and European history that began after the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 and continued until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Occurring during the era of the Fr ...

for decorating elaborate hotels and private residences. He decorated the lounge of the Ritz Hotel in the

Louis XIV style The Louis XIV style or ''Louis Quatorze'' ( , ), also called French classicism, was the style of architecture and decorative arts intended to glorify King Louis XIV and his reign. It featured majesty, harmony and regularity. It became the official ...

during its construction from 1905–1906. In 1909–1910,

Claridge's Claridge's is a 5-star hotels, 5-star hotel at the corner of Brook Street, London, Brook Street and Davies Street in Mayfair, London. The hotel is owned and managed by the Maybourne Hotel Group. History Founding Claridge's traces its origins to ...

Hotel determined to renovate their facility to better compete with the newly completed Ritz. They hired Boulanger to create the relief sculptures of the ballroom in the Parisian style of Louis XV. Boulanger collected

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

, XV, and XVI furniture for his clientele, who generally included the upper echelons of society, like

Jacques Seligmann Jacques (Jacob) Seligmann (18 September 1858, in Frankfurt-am-Main – 30 October 1923, in Paris) was a highly successful antiquarian and art dealer with businesses in both Paris and New York. He was one of the first to foster American interest in ...

and Robert Fleming. Fleming hired Boulanger in 1912 to design the dining room of his residence at 27

Grosvenor Square Grosvenor Square ( ) is a large garden square in the Mayfair district of Westminster, Greater London. It is the centrepiece of the Mayfair property of the Duke of Westminster, and takes its name from the duke's surname "Grosvenor". It was deve ...

. Though he often worked in London, Boulanger's offices were located at the Hotel Nicolai in Paris.

References

French interior designers Sculptors from Paris French male sculptors Belle Époque {{France-sculptor-stub