Oh how I so love classic periodic furniture. I mean the ones that take us back in time. And never go out of fashion
And today is a very significant day as we mark Thomas Chippendale's life!
Image Credit: google.co.uk
And I so love Google's Doodle. Trust them to come up trumps. All well-known Chippendale furniture pieces 'doodly' represented here!
So, who was THOMAS CHIPPENDALE?
He was a very famous 18th century English cabinet maker as well as a furniture designer. And he's from Yorkshire, just like me :-) I wrote a piece about him for one of Interior Design Diploma assignments which is reproduced below
"He was well known
for making furniture that was more functional thus concentrating on strength
over appearance. Quite famous for his cabriole legs with the carved claw and
ball foot that were popular on his chairs and dining tables He loved using
acanthus leaf as carved designs and pierced urn shaped splats on chairs. His
style commonly featured elaborate lines and embellishments
Chippendale published
a book called “the Gentlemans’ and
Cabinet-Makers’ Director”. This served like an advertising journal for tradesmen.
He also had a
Chinese style, sometimes called Chinoiserie which featured pagodas, bamboo
turnings, claw-and-ball feet, intricate latticework and lacquering. Then
finally, he had a Gothic influenced style that contained pointed arches,
quatrefoils and fret-worked legs.Chippendale was
best known for his desks and secretaries and he was the first to design the
Pembroke table which had a drop-leaf design with an oblong or rectangular fixed
centrepiece which contained a drawer underneath.Thomas Chippendale
loved using Rococo, Chinese and Gothic influences and representing this in his
furniture by including motifs like shells, rocks, foliage, flowers and C scrolls.. His was a master carver with designs typically
being made of His later works had French-Chinese and Gothic influences."
And now I share some of his most beautifully designed furniture ......
Lovely Jappened Chippendale wardrobe in Green and Gold at Nostell Priory.
A couple of "Chippendale" armchairs
Now this I adore. Rococo inspired Chippendale mirror adorned with flowers, birds, leaves and bulrushes.
This lovely corner cabinet with chinoiserie detailing, I believe, was made for the actor David Garrick 1768 - 1778.
}My take on Thomas Chippendale ~ His furniture pieces are classics, their value has appreciated a lot over time and I wouldn't mind owning a piece of history one day!~