Background
Juste Aurèle Meissonier was born in 1695, in Turin, Italy.
architect designer painter sculptor goldsmith
Juste Aurèle Meissonier was born in 1695, in Turin, Italy.
Early in his career Meissonier migrated to Paris, receiving a warrant as master goldsmith from King Louis XV in 1724 and an appointment as designer for the king’s bedchamber and cabinet in 1726. He had a powerful and fertile imagination; his fantastic grottoes and swirling, animated, asymmetrical metalwork designs combined contrasting and original motifs. As a goldsmith, he was remarkable for the boldness of his designs for such objects as snuffboxes, watch cases, sword hilts, and tureens. He prepared three fine sets of sketches for interior decoration, furniture, and goldsmith designs. He also developed a plan for the facade of the church of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, in 1726, but few of his architectural ideas were realized.
Juste Aurèle Meissonier died on July 31, 1750, in Paris.