When it comes to furnishing their houses with antiques, the ardent antiques aficionado may veer more towards eclecticism where they want a selection of the very best from a wide variety of genres rather than the collector who focuses very much on complete sets and limited editions of the same thing. So for the eclectic, it is not the sleek lines of the Regency antique cellaret sideboard, side table, console table and long case clock that they desire to furnish their living rooms with. It could be a 16th century Italian walnut table, a Queen Anne walnut chair with an early cabriole leg and a late Georgian semi-circular side table decorated with borders of classical motifs and gilding.
The eclectic doesn’t mind mixing the old with the new or newer either and is quite happy to mix nationalities too. The very finest mid 18th century commode designed by Gilles Joubert would fit happily alongside a Gordon Russell Art Deco dressing table, and be within easy distance of a state of the art brand new bespoke Smallbone bathroom and kitchen.
So is the eclectic a bit of a Philistine really? That’s what we might call someone who just buys what they like immaterial of whether things actually go together or not. Or could we say that the pedigree of the antique piece of furniture transcends good taste and a hotchpotch of the finest antiques will always show discernment?