Empire (style)
The Empire Style, sometimes considered as the second phase of
Neoclassicism, with its early phase called the
Adam style in Great Britain and
Louis Seize, or
Louis XVI, in France, is an early-
19th century design movement in
architecture,
furniture and other
decorative arts, and the
visual arts that takes its name and originates from
Napoleon's rule of
France, known as the
First French Empire. As it was intended to idealize Napoleon's leadership and magnify the increasing stature of the French state, the Empire style was created by French designers who drew heavily for their inspiration on symbols and ornamental designs borrowed from the glorious empires of ancient Greece and Rome.
Encyclopedia
The
Empire Style, sometimes considered as the second phase of
Neoclassicism, with its early phase called the
Adam style in Great Britain and
Louis Seize, or
Louis XVI, in France, is an early-
19th century design movement in
architecture,
furniture and other
decorative arts, and the
visual arts that takes its name and originates from
Napoleon's rule of
France, known as the
First French Empire. As it was intended to idealize Napoleon's leadership and magnify the increasing stature of the French state, the Empire style was created by French designers who drew heavily for their inspiration on symbols and ornamental designs borrowed from the glorious empires of ancient Greece and Rome. As such, French Empire became a state-sponsored design movement that soon spread to and affected every field of aesthetics, most notably in architecture in such grandiose Neoclassical structures as the
Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel,
Vendome Column, and
La Madeleine, which were built in
Paris to emulate the famous edifices of
Imperial Rome. In the decorative and visual arts as well, the Empire style soon dominated virtually every area as a stirring metaphor for a nation's prestige and ambitions.
Before and after Napoleon's downfall, the style was adopted in many other countries of Europe, as well as in the United States. It took particular root in
Imperial Russia, where it was used to celebrate the victory over Napoleon in such memorial structures as the
Russian Admiralty,
Kazan Cathedral,
Alexander Column, and
Narva Gate. The
Stalinist architecture is sometimes referred to as Stalin's Empire style.
The style survived in
Italy longer than in most of Europe, partly because of its Imperial Roman associations, partly because it was revived as a national style of architecture following the unification of Italy in 1870. Mario Praz wrote about this style as the
Italian Empire.
In the
United Kingdom,
Germany, and the
United States, the Empire style was adapted to local conditions and gradually acquired further expression as the
Egyptian Revival,
Greek Revival,
Biedermeier style, Regency style, and late-Federal style.
See also
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