Established in New York since 1989, Lacroze Inc. evolved as the offspring of Coram Nobis Antiquarians, the well-respected New York dealership founded in 1982 by mother and son team, Mercedes and Eduardo Lacroze. Recognized for its presence in the art and antiques market for over twenty years, Lacroze Inc., individually or in joint venture ships with Phillippe Farley Inc. and, later, Epel & Lacroze, became a favorite source for the most noted designers, collectors and prestigious dealers of its time. The firm handled a wide array of important pieces which were exhibited at major venues like the Paris Biennale (1990/92), the New York Winter Antiques Show (1993), the Dallas Tri Delta (1985/90) and the Houston Theta (1988/90) shows, the San Francisco Antiques Show (1989/90) and the Baltimore Antiques Show (1985/86), among others, and which made their way into important private collections and prominent dealer stocks worldwide.

With a longstanding interest in the lesser researched output of peripheral continental centers – Scandinavia and the Baltic States; Germany, Bohemia and Russia; the Veneto and Vienna; the Two Sicilies and Piemonte - the collection, over time, focused on uncertain and difficult to ascribe one of a kind pieces and in the curated threading of their historical design continuity beyond place of origin and period of production. Thus, the firm became an early leading dealer in classical Baroque, Neoclassicism in its multiple expressions, Biedermeier, Sezession and Art Deco; as a result, it developed a line of interest that is held to this day, but that has expanded its reach and search beyond the original mainland centers of production, to the confines of their colonial outreaches and their mutually enriching interaction – the Spanish Viceroys, the Manila route, Goa, Batavia and China.

Holding degrees in architecture and architectural theory from both his native Buenos Aires and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Copenhagen, Eduardo Lacroze, the firm’s principal, has managed to combine an international award winning architectural practice with a lifelong interest in the decorative arts as an integral component of the built form and a perdurable testimony of the contextual conditions under which they are conceived.

Mr. Lacroze’s far ranging architectural practice has naturally fostered the equally broad scope of his collections and a personal interest in their less obvious interrelations; the weaving and unfolding of this web of interconnectivity is what mostly triggers the sometimes puzzling acquisitions and the research that underpins them - some still ongoing and looking for answers.

It is Mr. Lacroze’s understanding of the visual and emotional impact that a given piece can convey when placed within the proper spatial envelope, whether coupling modern abstraction with period interiors or placing an eighteenth century tour de force of whimsy and craftsmanship within the crisp rationality of a modern interior, what confers a distinctive dimension to his profile as both dealer and collector. It is this understanding of the symbiosis of architecture and the decorative arts what singles each acquisition. Furthermore, it is the understanding of the historical continuum of design as a reflection of social dynamics what weaves together a collection of otherwise seemingly unrelated types and periods and makes it relevant in today´s environment.

Since 2001, and focusing on his growing architectural practice (for more info please visit LMPNY), Mr. Lacroze has shifted from an open public market presence towards integrating architecture and the decorative arts by combining private consulting and dealing within the framework of his multiple professional commissions.  

Today, while remaining dedicated to architecture, Mr. Lacroze is embarking, now joined by his daughter Olivia, in the repositioning of his culled collections in the open market place, by providing access both to his inventories and to his combined design, consulting and research services and resources. 

With an emphasis on rarity and individuality, but mindful of quality and condition, the Lacroze Inc. inventory is a continuously evolving grouping of furniture, works of art and decorations – silver and metalwork are included when they transcend the merely functional to become artful - that cuts across time and place and, as such, can find itself comfortably at home within a variety of architectural settings.