A wooden chair from Casa Batlló, sculpted by Antoni Gaudí with organic grace. Its heart-shaped backrest holds a delicate floral carving, whispering nature’s rhythm into the room.
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A wooden chair from Casa Batlló, sculpted by Antoni Gaudí with organic grace. Its heart-shaped backrest holds a delicate floral carving, whispering nature’s rhythm into the room.
A wooden chair from Casa Batlló, sculpted by Antoni Gaudí with organic grace. Its heart-shaped backrest holds a delicate floral carving, whispering nature’s rhythm into the room.
This photo depicts a beautifully crafted artistic sleigh featuring a mythical horse with wings. The sleigh is displayed against a pink wall inside the Palace of Versailles, showcasing the luxurious design typical of the era.
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•Designer: Designed by Lockwood de Forest (American, New York 1850–1932 Santa Barbara, California)
•Date: ca. 1881–90
•Geography: Possibly made in Ahmedabad, India; Possibly made in New York, New York, United States
•Culture: American
•Medium: Teak, plaited matting, mixed metals
•Dimensions: 65 × 69¾ × 1¾ in. (165.1 × 177.2 × 4.4 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Gift of Priscilla de Forest Williams, 1992
•Accession Number: 1992.43
With its carved teak frame, vividly patterned plaited matting, and Japanese lacquer and mixed-metal finials, this unusual screen epitomizes the 1880s fascination with exotic styles and materials. The screen’s designer, Lockwood de Forest, who was trained as a painter, did much to foster popular taste for such exoticism in decorative arts and architecture during the late nineteenth century. In 1881, with the ambition of reviving traditional methods of craftsmanship and indigenous designs, he established workshops in Ahmedabad, India, where carved woodwork was produced for use in American interiors and furniture. The workshops continued under his direction until 1907, when he turned over their management to Louis Comfort Tiffany. Over the years, de Forest amassed a sizeable collection of Indian, Tibetan, Chinese, and Persian objects, most of which were acquired by the Museum in 1915. While many of the items produced at the Ahmedabad Wood Carving Company were sold as stock items, others were custom made for a specific interior. This screen stood in the living room of Wawapek, the country house of Emily and Robert de Forest in Cold Spring, Long Island. (Robert, Lockwood’s older brother, was the president of The Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1913 to 1931). The screen’s multicolored matting complemented Emily’s collection of American Indian baskets, which was arranged on shelves in the room. With the Indian carving of its teak frame and its mixed-metal finials of Japanese sake cups, the screen exemplifies the tendency to blur distinctions among far-flung styles while creating “exotic” interiors.
Provenance
The artist’s brother, Robert W. de Forest, New York; his son, Johnston de Forest; his daughter, Priscilla de Forest Williams, until 1992
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•South Asia and the Himalayan Region, 1800–1900 A.D.
MetPublications
•Candace Wheeler: The Art and Enterprise of American Design, 1875–1900
•“Recent Acquisitions: A Selection, 1991–1992”: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 50, no. 2 (Fall, 1992)
•Maker: Herter Brothers (1864–1906)
•Date: 1881–82
•Geography: Made in New York, New York, United States
•Culture: American
•Medium: Gilded wood, mother-of-pearl, and original silk velvet upholstery
•Dimensions: 33½ × 27 × 28 in. (85.1 × 68.6 × 71.1 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Purchase, Barrie A. and Deedee Wigmore Foundation Gift, 2012
•Accession Number: 2012.216
William H. Vanderbilt, son of Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt, inherited a vast fortune and a lucrative transport business, which he expanded exponentially, becoming one of the wealthiest men in America. In 1879, to mark his elevated social and economic status, he built a mansion that spanned an entire city block on Fifth Avenue, between Fifty-First and Fifty-Second Streets. He commissioned Herter Brothers, one of the premier cabinetmaking firms in New York City, to decorate and furnish his home.
In devising distinct decorative schemes for each room of the mansion, Herter Brothers drew inspiration from a wide range of historical styles and utilized expensive, exotic materials.
The house’s original furnishings were dispersed when the residence was redecorated between 1915 and 1916, and at the time of its demolition in 1946. Many of these items have come to light only in recent years.
Perhaps the most remarkable discovery from the drawing room is this lady’s bergère (armchair) with its original upholstery, which was paired with a larger gentleman’s bergère. On the sides of the chair, two opposing griffins, whose wings spread to connect at the center, flank a shield-like motif and mother-of-pearl roundels framed by sinuous rope-like elements. The boldly turned legs are in the form of a stylized lotus. The voided and red silk cut velvet on a gold ground in a Chinese style, with elaborate tufted trellis trim over red silk fringe and gold cording, is an extraordinary survival.
Provenance
W.H. Vanderbilt, New York, 1881 Cornelius Vanderbilt III, New York, 1885 Private collection of a lady from El Paso, Texas Bequeathed to Centennial Museum in 1969 Deaccessioned from the Centennial Museum to benefit the Museum Collections Fund Sold at Charloton Hall Auction, Mar. 25, 2012 to Margo Johnson, Inc.
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•The United States and Canada, 1800–1900 A.D.
Pedestals from the Drawing Room of the William H. Vanderbilt House
•Artist: Herter Brothers (1864–1906)
•Date: 1879–82
•Geography: Made in New York, New York, United States
•Culture: American
•Medium: Egyptian alabaster, gilt brass, and reproduction red glass jewels
•Dimensions: 64¼ × 10 15/16 × 10 15/16 in. (163.2 × 27.8 × 27.8 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Purchase, Barrie A. and Deedee Wigmore Foundation Gift, 2002
•Accession Number: 2002.298.1 and 2002.298.2
Herter Brothers, the leading cabinetmaking, design, and decorating firm during the second half of the nineteenth century, created a pair (2002.298.1-.2) of opulent pedestals for their most prestigious commission, the grand Fifth Avenue residence of William H. Vanderbilt. Each pedestal is a column carved with ribbons and “jewel”-encrusted garlands. Ormolu capitals incorporate classical female masks and birds’ heads; decorative mounts feature stylized foliate patterns. They were intended as an integral part of the ornate decoration of Vanderbilt’s drawing room, described in 1883–84, shortly after its completion, as “gorgeous in the extreme: everything sparkles and flashes with gold and color—with mother-of-pearl, with marbles, with jewel-effects in glass—and almost every surface is covered, one might say weighted, with ornament.” These onyx columns or pedestals, “hung with gold chains set with colored cut crystals,” contributed to this impression. Their carved and gilded decorative motifs—tied bowknots and necklaces strung with jewelry—are repeated in decorations throughout the house. Lighting fixtures in the form of vases originally stood upon them, adding their own luster to the composition.
The drawing room was unquestionably the house’s most sumptuous space. It was likened to the interior of a richly lined jewel box, its walls hung with crimson fabric, embroidered with gold thread and jewels of mother-of-pearl. Although the pedestals were originally part of an extraordinary interior scheme long since destroyed, they stand eloquently as independent works of art. In their design and use of luxurious materials, they epitomize the delicacy, opulence, and elegance of that room and of the Gilded Age.
Provenance
•Christie’s, Inc., has told us that the pedestals were consigned to them by a South American dealer. [Conversation with Sebastian Davies, Christie’s, April 24, 2002]
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•The United States and Canada, 1800–1900 A.D.
Console from the Drawing Room of the William H. Vanderbilt House
•Artist: Herter Brothers (1864–1906)
•Date: 1879–82
•Geography:Made in New York, New York, United States
•Culture: American
•Medium: Gilded wood, mother-of-pearl, Egyptian alabaster, and composition ornament
•Dimensions: 35¼ × 34¼ in. (89.5 × 87 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Gift of Jan and Warren Adelson, 2013
•Accession Number: 2013.956a, b
William H. Vanderbilt, son of Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt, inherited a vast fortune and a lucrative transport business, which he expanded exponentially, becoming one of the wealthiest men in America. In 1879, to mark his elevated social and economic status, he built a mansion that spanned an entire city block on Fifth Avenue, between Fifty-First and Fifty-Second Streets. He commissioned Herter Brothers, one of the premier cabinetmaking firms in New York City, to decorate and furnish his home.
In devising distinct decorative schemes for each room of the mansion, Herter Brothers drew inspiration from a wide range of historical styles and utilized expensive, exotic materials.
While every room in the Vanderbilt mansion displayed lavish ornament and detail, the drawing room was the centerpiece of Herter Brothers’ unified vision. It embodied an eclectic classical- Assyrian revival theme with a crimson color palette, replete with gilding and reflective surfaces. This unusual console is one of several surviving furnishings of this luxurious space and was integral to the drawing room. The surface is gilded and an Egyptian alabaster top relates to the paired pedestals adorning the room. Its decorative features recall Renaissance motifs: two pairs of opposing griffins and cornucopias below menacing saytrs’ masks flank a central pillar of lustrous abalone. The carved legs are encrusted with jewel-like teardrop garlands.
Provenance
William H. Vanderbilt, 640 Fifth Avenue, New York City; private collection, Southern California (dates and origin unknown); Wladziu (or Vladziu) Valentino Liberace (1919-1987), known as Liberace, the flamboyant American singer and entertainer, Palm Springs, California; Butterfield & Butterfield Los Angeles, April 9-12, 1988, The Liberace Collection, lot 1168; Butterfield & Butterfield Los Angeles, September 17, 1996, European and American Furniture and Decorative Arts, lot 4183; Butterfield & Butterfield Los Angeles, September 22, 1997, European and American Furniture & Decorative Arts, lot 3551; Margot Johnson, Inc., New York; present owner.
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•The United States and Canada, 1800–1900 A.D.
•Designer: Designed by Lockwood de Forest (American, New York 1850–1932 Santa Barbara, California)
•Date: ca. 1881–90
•Geography: Possibly made in Ahmedabad, India; Possibly made in New York, New York, United States
•Culture: American
•Medium: Teak, plaited matting, mixed metals
•Dimensions: 65 × 69¾ × 1¾ in. (165.1 × 177.2 × 4.4 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Gift of Priscilla de Forest Williams, 1992
•Accession Number: 1992.43
With its carved teak frame, vividly patterned plaited matting, and Japanese lacquer and mixed-metal finials, this unusual screen epitomizes the 1880s fascination with exotic styles and materials. The screen’s designer, Lockwood de Forest, who was trained as a painter, did much to foster popular taste for such exoticism in decorative arts and architecture during the late nineteenth century. In 1881, with the ambition of reviving traditional methods of craftsmanship and indigenous designs, he established workshops in Ahmedabad, India, where carved woodwork was produced for use in American interiors and furniture. The workshops continued under his direction until 1907, when he turned over their management to Louis Comfort Tiffany. Over the years, de Forest amassed a sizeable collection of Indian, Tibetan, Chinese, and Persian objects, most of which were acquired by the Museum in 1915. While many of the items produced at the Ahmedabad Wood Carving Company were sold as stock items, others were custom made for a specific interior. This screen stood in the living room of Wawapek, the country house of Emily and Robert de Forest in Cold Spring, Long Island. (Robert, Lockwood’s older brother, was the president of The Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1913 to 1931). The screen’s multicolored matting complemented Emily’s collection of American Indian baskets, which was arranged on shelves in the room. With the Indian carving of its teak frame and its mixed-metal finials of Japanese sake cups, the screen exemplifies the tendency to blur distinctions among far-flung styles while creating “exotic” interiors.
Provenance
The artist’s brother, Robert W. de Forest, New York; his son, Johnston de Forest; his daughter, Priscilla de Forest Williams, until 1992
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•South Asia and the Himalayan Region, 1800–1900 A.D.
MetPublications
•Candace Wheeler: The Art and Enterprise of American Design, 1875–1900
•“Recent Acquisitions: A Selection, 1991–1992”: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 50, no. 2 (Fall, 1992)
•Designer: Design attributed to Marcelle Lancelot (French, 1849–1942)
•Date: ca. 1882
•Geography: Country of Origin France
•Culture: French
•Medium: Bronze, gilded bronze, and cloisonné enamel
•Dimensions: 38 × 15½ in. (96.5 × 39.4 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Collection of Margot Johnson
•Accession Number: L.2015.74
One of the most arresting features of the Japanese parlor was the large wall clock. A menacing golden dragon with an outstretched tongue extends on the vertical support on a patterned background of gold and blue enamel. A painted dragon adorns the clock face while the Roman numerals are represented as if they were Japanese characters. The design of the clock has been attributed to the French sculptor Marcelle Lancelot, who was responsible for some of the more sculptural decorative treatments in the house.
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•France, 1800–1900 A.D.
•Maker: Herter Brothers (1864–1906)
•Date: ca. 1870
•Geography: Made in New York, New York, United States
•Culture: American
•Medium: Gilded wood and reproduction upholstery
•Dimensions: 36½ × 17 × 17 in. (92.7 × 43.2 × 43.2 cm) Other: 18 in. (45.7 cm)
•Classification: Furniture
•Credit Line: Purchase, Barrie A. and Deedee Wigmore Foundation Gift, 2012
•Accession Number: 2012.217.2
William H. Vanderbilt, son of Cornelius “Commodore” Vanderbilt, inherited a vast fortune and a lucrative transport business, which he expanded exponentially, becoming one of the wealthiest men in America. In 1879, to mark his elevated social and economic status, he built a mansion that spanned an entire city block on Fifth Avenue, between Fifty-First and Fifty-Second Streets. He commissioned Herter Brothers, one of the premier cabinetmaking firms in New York City, to decorate and furnish his home. In devising distinct decorative schemes for each room of the mansion, Herter Brothers drew inspiration from a wide range of historical styles and utilized expensive, exotic materials.
Originally fashioned by Herter Brothers for Vanderbilt’s previous residence, this side chair, one of a pair, was incorporated in the first-floor boudoir of his new mansion on Fifth Avenue. While Vanderbilt desired to construct a completely new and modern residence, the boudoir was part of the family’s apartments not used for formal entertaining and thus offered the opportunity to reuse furnishings. Hallmarks of Herter’s earlier style include the turned legs and ionic capitals, the overall form of the back, and the graceful swans’ necks and heads at the crest rails. For the new room, Christian Herter reupholstered the chairs in a custom fabric, manufactured in France, of his own design—a Japanesque pattern with lines of gold thread to suggest water, interspersed with small dragonflies, tiny waterlily blossoms, and leaves.
Provenance
William H. Vanderbilt (1821-1885), New York, New York; Josephine Clardy Fox (died 1969); Centennial Museum at University of Texas at El Paso; sold by Charlton Hall Auction House, West Columbia, South Carolina, March 23, 2012, lot 602; bought on behalf the Metropolitan Museum of Art by dealer Margot Johnson, New York.
Timeline of Art History (2000-Present)
Timelines
•The United States and Canada, 1800–1900 A.D.
A refreshed installation devoted to Herter Brothers’ most important commission—for the William H. Vanderbilt House (on Fifth Avenue between 51st and 52nd Streets)—complements the debut of the Worsham-Rockefeller Dressing Room and exhibition on George A. Schastey. Herter Brothers rivaled Schastey as one of the premier cabinetmaking and decorating firms of the Gilded Age. Completed in 1882, their designs for the Vanderbilt House resulted in the most opulent interiors of the day.
Among the new discoveries being shown for the first time are a pair of rosewood side chairs for Vanderbilt’s library; a pair of gilded and mother-of-pearl armchairs and gilded console table from the drawing room, one of New York’s most sumptuous rooms of the day; and a cabinet for the Japanese room of the Vanderbilt House. The Metropolitan now owns the largest holdings of Herter Brothers work for the Vanderbilt commission.
The Herter Brothers and the William H. Vanderbilt House installation will be on view through January 31, 2017.
