The closest many of us will ever come to a genuinely
intimate relationship is that we share with a chair, particularly a long
favored chair, like this gaily upholstered bergère.
A bergère is an enclosed upholstered French
armchair, (fauteuil) with back and armrests supported on an upholstered frame.
While the seat frame is over-upholstered, the rest of the wooden framing is
exposed.
A bergère may be molded or carved, beech painted, or
gilded, made of fruitwood, walnut or mahogany with a waxed finish. It may
include padded elbow rests perched atop the armrests. It is fitted with a
loose, but tailored, seat cushion and designed for lounging in comfort, with a
deeper wider seat than that of a regular fauteuil (armchair), although more
formal models of the bergère are available as well. In the White House for
example.
In the eighteenth century, a bergère was essentially
what is known as a meuble courant, which literally translates to a current
piece of furniture. Current, because it
was designed to be moved about to suit convenience, rather than being ranged
permanently or formally along the walls as part of the decor.
Who could resist its warmth, whimsy and happy countenance that smiles from whichever corner it graces? Like the
friend who accompanies you to a party reminding you you’re not alone in a room
of strangers, the silent, sturdy and reliably devoted bergère is your private
accomplice, your most trusted confidante, the one true plush pal that will
never drop you, disappoint you or let you down. The fold of its strong,
unyielding arms never wavers, equivocates or shuns the simplest of life’s
surprises: a post-party collapse, a vexing decision, a defeated slump, a quiet
cry, a stunned silence, or the blissful fog of sleep.
Each day it greets you with the gentlest of nudges, the
softest of caresses, and each night, in grateful commendation, it gathers you
into its protective arms to soothe, shelter and calm, reminding you once more,
lest you forget, of its fealty, faithfulness, and unapologetic love.
