André-Charles Boulle was the 17th century French cabinetmaker famously known as being the exception to the norm in the art of wardrobe marquetry. Marquetry is the art of applying veneer pieces to a structure (such as a wardrobe) to form designs,decorative patterns,or pictures. He was so talented and remarkable in his designs, that his name was given to the specific art he perfected, known as boulle. Boulle is the inlay designs combining brass and tortoise-shell. Originally a painter André-Charles Boulle worked many years at Versailles in which he did his most remarkable work. This lead him into becoming a highly paid and the most requested wardrobe designer among the rich and powerful. By the time he reached his thirties he was already getting special treatment from the royals. He had earn a prestigious offer from Henri IV, in which he was granted his own lodging in the Louvre galleries. This meant he had proved his worth and was a favored artist to the crown. In 1672 Louis XIV granted him the lodging of deceased Jean Macé’, after being personally recommended by Jean-Baptiste Colbert, who was minister of the arts to Louis XIV. However, despite being a favorite among the rich and powerful and then becoming so himself, André-Charles Boulle had an addiction in collecting art works. His favorites were paintings and engravings. Using up all the upfront commissions given to him on this obsession, he stop paying his fellow wardrobe craftsmen and therefore stopped producing work. His clients who paid ahead for the work didn’t receive what they paid for and André-Charles Boulle was brought into court to face his debtors. After several petitions for mercy in 1704 he was granted a six month time frame by the king to get his finances back in order.
In 1720 André-Charles Boulle found himself in dire straights after a fire extended from another shop to his and destroyed everything he had been working on. Even though it was only one store out of three he maintained, the losses were devastating. Not only did he lose the items and wardrobes he was creating for others, he also loss his beloved art collection. He again pleaded for financial help due to spending all commissions before the work was completed and borrowing money to buy more art at each art sale ,which included his favorite artworks, engravings and drawings. in 1792 when he died in he was still in debt, a victim some say of his love for art more than his love to create it. His works have been displayed in several museums and private collections. His wardrobe designs and phenomenal artistic abilities make his work so rare most of his work has not even been seen in public.
Nowadays veneer on wardrobes is commonly used to keep the prices down of wardrobes that would otherwise cost more if solid wood was used such as oak wardrobes, mahogany wardrobes and in some cases pine wardrobes.