Thomas Chippendale

Thomas Chippendale was without question Britain’s greatest cabinetmaker. He excelled in every style he worked in, from the whimsical Rococo and the fashion for all things Chinese in his early career, to the neo-classical with its straight lines derived from the ancient world.

Chippendale was born in the town of Otley, in Yorkshire, in 1718, the only son of John Chippendale (1690–1758) and Mary Drake. He was apprenticed to his father, John, a joiner in Otley, Yorkshire, and he moved to London in 1748 where he soon set up premises at the sign of the Chair in St Martin’s Lane.

He made his name in 1754 with the publication of a book of designs, The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director, which showed the fashionable furniture of the time. The prevailing style was Rococo, and the 160 designs were beautifully engraved and available for clients to choose from and for other cabinetmakers to copy. The success was immediate, and The Director was reprinted the following year and further enlarged and edited in 1762, by which time neo-classicism was fast emerging as the fashionable style pioneered by the likes of Robert Adam, who had returned from Rome in 1758.

Chippendale was astute at promoting his Director to a wealthy clientele, whether it be the established aristocracy or the holders of newly created fortunes in the burgeoning trading nation that England had become in the 18th century. His early commissions included the Earl of Dumfries in 1759 for Dumfries House in Scotland and Sir Lawrence Dundas in 1763 for his fashionable London residence at 19 Arlington Street.

In his native Yorkshire where he was to have a great following, Chippendale worked in tandem with the architect Robert Adam at Nostell Priory for Sir Rowland Winn. Running concurrently in Yorkshire was his work for Edwin Lascelles at Harewood House. It was Chippendale’s largest and most valuable commission, spanning more than a decade from 1768 and continued by his son, Thomas, for the following two decades. The carved mahogany of the 1750s and 1760s had made way for lighter marquetry pieces, as well as intricately carved, gilded and painted, mirrors and chairs. The famous Diana and Minerva commode cost £86, whereas many of the mirrors stretched into hundreds of pounds.

Interestingly, his brief, throughout his career, was not limited to supplying the furniture. There was no part in a space that his hand didn’t touch, from wallpaper to bedding. The genius of his design, the perfection of his execution and his mastery in all mediums make Thomas Chippendale Britain’s greatest cabinetmaker. No fortune was amassed, far from it, instead he left us his creations, a much greater legacy.