Guillaume Denière

Bronzier (1815–1903)

Born in Paris in 1815, Guillaume Denière trained under the ornamental designer Aimé Chenavard and the architect Henri Labrouste. In 1844, he took over the firm founded by his father in 1804 on Rue Vivienne. The enterprise then employed up to four hundred craftsmen, fulfilling commissions for King Louis-Philippe as well as for the Parisian high bourgeoisie. Denière produced furnishing bronzes, candelabra, clocks, and table surtouts. He surrounded himself with talented sculptors, including Carrier-Belleuse and Constant Sévin. His centerpieces, both fluid and vigorous, received critical acclaim as early as the surtout executed for the Duke of Orléans in 1842. A supplier to the Tuileries Palace, where he delivered several clocks in 1852—including the “Génie des Arts”—he was also distinguished at every Exposition Universelle: in 1867, Napoleon III purchased a mantel garniture from him. His clientele grew international, from the Russian ambassador Kisselev, for whom he crafted a monumental centerpiece in 1854, to the Viceroy of Egypt Saïd Pasha and King Norodom I of Cambodia, for whom he created the grilles for the Throne Room.