Born into a family of Dutch bankers and collectors, William Williams-Hope (1802-1855) assembled an extensive collection of Dutch old masters, 19th-century paintings and art objects. In 1837, Hope acquired the Hôtel de Monaco, a neoclassical townhouse built in 1774. Dissatisfied with its interiors, Hope had them refurbished in the Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Baroque styles, of which the bedroom survives in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs.

Dubbed ‘a little Versailles’, Hope’s residence was a showcase for his collection. It was dispersed at auction following Hope’s death in 1855 and today can be found in the Wallace Collection and the National Gallery of Art, Washington. By examining Hope’s sale catalogues and the interiors of his residence, this paper will reconstruct his eclectic taste and contextualise it within the collecting practices of the restored French monarchy and the rise of Historicism.

About the speaker: Barbara Lasic is Senior Lecturer in History of Art at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London. Prior to her academic career, she worked at the Victoria & Albert Museum as part of the curatorial team involved in the redevelopment of the Europe: 1600–1800 galleries, and she held curatorial positions at the Wellcome Trust and the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. Barbara has published on the subject of French decorative arts, the history of taste and the history of collecting. Her research interests include the production and consumption of French decorative arts, 1650–1900, the formation of museums, the private and institutional collecting and display of French art, and, more broadly, 19th- and early 20th-century cultures of collecting.

Image caption: Panelling from William Williams-Hope’s Bedroom, France, 1840. Musée des Arts Décoratifs (Inv. 32425).

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