Zuber & Cie (officially Manufacture Papiers Peints Zuber et Cie) is a French company that is primarily known for painted wallpaper and fabrics. Zuber claims to be the last factory in the world to produce woodblock-printed wallpapers and furnishing fabrics with a history dating back to 1797.
History
The company's forerunner, Nicholas Dolfus & Cie, was founded in 1790 in
Mulhouse, Alsace.
Its name changed in 1795, to Hartmann, Risler & Cie.
In 1797, it moved to
Rixheim
Rixheim (; Alsatian: ''Rìxa'' ) is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France. It forms part of the Mulhouse Alsace Agglomération, the inter-communal local government body for the Mulhouse conurbation.
Geogra ...
, France.
In 1802, the company was bought out by Jean Zuber, and its name changed to Zuber & Cie.
''
The Frederick Post'' reported that Jean Zuber's wallpapers were so respected that
King Louis Philippe honored him with the
Legion of Honor
The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...
in 1834. The award was made for Zuber's exhibit at the
French Industrial Exposition of 1834.
For its production, Zuber & Cie uses woodblocks (more than 100,000) engraved as early as the 18th century.
Zuber & Cie's panoramic wallpapers include ''Vues de l'Amérique du Nord'',
''Eldorado,''
''Hindoustan,''
''les Guerres d'Independence'', and ''Isola Bella.'' Zuber & Cie also produces dado borders, friezes, and ceiling papers, some depicting faux representations of architectural details,
drapery
Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles (Old French , from Late Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , from Late Latin ). It ma ...
,
fringe
Fringe may refer to:
Arts and music
* "The Fringe", or Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival
* Adelaide Fringe, the world's second-largest annual arts festival
* Fringe theatre, a name for alternative theatre
* Purple fri ...
, and
tassel
A tassel is a finishing feature in fabric and clothing decoration. It is a universal ornament that is seen in varying versions in many cultures around the globe.
History and use
In the Hebrew Bible, the Lord spoke to Moses instructing him to ...
s. Zuber & Cie has showrooms in Paris and Nice, New York, Los Angeles, London and Dubai.
During the presidency of
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
,
First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy
Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular f ...
on recommendation of historian
Henry Francis du Pont
Henry Francis du Pont (May 27, 1880 – April 11, 1969) was an American horticulturist, collector of early American furniture and decorative arts, breeder of Holstein Friesian cattle, and scion of the powerful du Pont family. Converted into ...
had an antique copy of the panoramic wallpaper ''Vues de l'Amérique du Nord,'' (designed in 1843, per the Zuber et Cie website) installed in the
Diplomatic Reception Room
The Diplomatic Reception Room is one of three oval rooms in the Executive Residence of the White House, the official home of the president of the United States. It is located on the ground floor and is used as an entrance from the South Lawn ...
of the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
.
The wallpaper had been on the walls of a parlor in the Federal period Stoner House in
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
until 1961 when the house was demolished for a grocery store. Just before the demolition, the wallpaper was salvaged and sold to the White House. As with many 18th century wallpapers, this panorama is designed to be hung above a
dado. The formal dining room at the
Old Louisiana Governor's Mansion in
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...
is also decorated with the ''Vue de l'Amérique du Nord''.
Controversy
Zuber's panoramic scene ''Vues de l'Amérique du Nord,'' has been the subject of at least two protests. In 2020 students and alumnae of the
Spence School
The Spence School is an American all-girls private school in New York City, founded in 1892 by Clara B. Spence.
Spence has about 740 students, with grades K-4 representing the Lower School, 5-8 representing the Middle School, and 9-12 represe ...
for girls in New York City protested its use of racist caricatures in its depiction of Black Americans and indigenous Americans.
In 2019, students in a
Brown University
Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
graduate program wrote to the university, demanding the removal of the wallpaper for the same reasons. The wallpaper had been present in the campus'
Nightingale-Brown House since the 1930s.
Gallery
The
Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris
The Musée des Arts Décoratifs (, English: ''Museum of Decorative Arts'') is a museum in Paris, France, dedicated to the exhibition and preservation of the decorative arts. Located in the city’s 1st arrondissement, the museum occupies the P ...
owns 61 examples of wallpapers by Zuber & Cie, several of them made after models designed by flower painter
Joseph-Laurent Malaine.
References
* Abbott James A., and Elaine M. Rice. ''Designing Camelot: The Kennedy White House Restoration.'' Van Nostrand Reinhold: 1998. .
* Seale, William, ''The White House: The History of an American Idea.'' White House Historical Association: 1992, 2001. .
* ''The White House: An Historic Guide.'' White House Historical Association and the National Geographic Society: 2001. .
External links
Official websiteZuber & Cie objects in the collection of
the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum is a design museum at the Andrew Carnegie Mansion in Manhattan, New York City, along the Upper East Side's Museum Mile. It is one of 19 Smithsonian Institution museums and one of three Smithsonian facil ...
Zuber Wallpaper
at the Shakespeare Chateau in St. Joseph, MO
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zuber and Cie
Manufacturing companies of France
Wallpaper manufacturers
Companies based in Grand Est
Manufacturing companies established in 1797
French companies established in 1797