Commode
Castello Sforzesco - Museo dei Mobili e delle Sculture Lignee
1777
Walnut and fir wood inlaid with bois de violette, ebonized pear, maple, green-stained maple, boxwood, ash, with applications in chased bronze and marble top
The Applied Arts Collections of Sforza Castle possess an important collection of furniture made by the workshop of Giuseppe Maggiolini, a cabinetmaker from Parabiago, who became the "celebrated inlayer of Their Royal Highnesses" between the second half of the 18th century and the early 19th century.
Maggiolini's workshop is distinguished by its meticulous construction technique, skill in creating commodes, secretaries, tables with retractable elements, and the ability to make exquisite inlays, dye, and soften woods using over eighty essences, allowing him to imitate almost all color shades and replicate the designs of the greatest artists of the time.
Thanks to his craftsmanship, Giuseppe Maggiolini was able to transform a carpentry workshop into a great cultural enterprise, collaborating with painters, designers, and decorators involved in the architectural projects of Giuseppe Piermarini for the new court, in Milan and Monza: Giocondo Albertolli, Andrea Appiani, Agostino Gerli, Giuseppe Levati, Giuliano Traballesi.
Among the furniture on display in the Museum of Wooden Furniture and Sculptures, the Commode (inv. 344) features extensive figurative inlays designed by Andrea Appiani: on the front panel, a composition with putti and the nymph Pasitea, and on the side panels, the allegories of Council and Generosity.
For MuseoCity, the original watercolors by Appiani, from the Maggiolini Fund preserved at the Drawing Cabinet of Sforza Castle, will be exhibited alongside the Commode.
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