Architecture, Garden, Bird Aviaries, Jean Boussard, Antique Prints, Paris, 1881

Jean Boussard (b. 1844) (artist and etcher)
Lemercier et Cie. (printer)
Studies of Garden Aviaries
from Constructions et Decorations Pour Jardins
[Constructions and Decorations for Gardens]
Ve. A. Morel et Cie., Paris: 1881
Hand-colored etchings
13 x 10 inches average approximate plate mark
17 x 12.25 inches each overall
$3,000, set of 6 ($500 each, sold as a set)

Architectural studies for garden buildings to be erected in the extended landscape of a large French country house. Each is shown in its natural setting, and with a small inset architectural cross-section. The studies come from a set of 50 plates engraved by Jean Boussard. While some of the structures depicted in this series were actually built with their locations noted on the print, others were more likely imaginative flights of fancy. The designs are often unusual in shape and conception of the building, blending the practical with a bit of whimsy. and inventiveness.  The title of each indicates the name and purpose of the structure and often includes the name of the architect. Overall the series of French Victorian buildings include kiosks, greenhouses, orangeries (greenhouses where the wealthy wintered their citrus trees in Northern European climates), aviaries (live bird enclosures), rustic twig-and-branch buildings, and buildings to house animals.

The offered set of six prints are mainly different types of aviaries to house various types of birds. These include Voliere, Abris pour Oiseaux Poissy; Abris pour Volatiles; Reservoir et Colombier; Resserre a Outils; Banc Couvert a Rotsamhausem (Alsace).  Translated the titles indicate the type of structures: an aviary ; two bird shelters, one of which was in Poissy, France ; a dovecote for pigeons to live in ; a tool shed, and an outdoor covered bench for Rathsamhausen Castle in Ottrott, Alscace  France.

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