or André-Charles Boule
born Nov. 11, 1642, Paris, Fr.
died Feb. 29, 1732, Paris
French cabinetmaker.
After studying drawing, painting, and sculpture, he achieved fame as the most skillful furniture designer in Paris. In 1672 Louis XIV appointed him royal cabinetmaker at Versailles; his other patrons included Philip V of Spain and the duke of Bourbon. Boulle stretched the technique of marquetry to new heights, and his incorporation of elaborate brasswork and the inlaying of exotic woods (called boulle or buhl work, since his last name sometimes appeared as Buhl) was heavily imitated in the 18th–19th centuries.