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拍品專文
"the riot of luxurious carving" Reifsnyder catalogue, 1929.
"the apex is reached in the unstinted use of fine carving" Joseph Downs, 1952.
"lavishly endowed with ornate carving" Morrison H. Heckscher, 1985.
This chair illustrates an exceptional moment in American craftsmanship and its profusion of carved ornament provides a visual feast that is rarely seen in eighteenth-century Philadelphia, or any other colonial style center. Pre-dating the publication of Thomas Chippendale's Director (1754), this chair and others from the same original set are arguably the genesis of Philadelphia Rococo, the first appearance of the carved exuberance that would later characterize the most celebrated forms from Philadelphia's Chippendale era. Covering virtually every frontal surface, the rocaille, scrolled and foliate carving envelopes the chair like an embroidered veil and creates an effect of lightness that belies its substantive frame. Linear and intricate, the design and execution of these motifs demonstrate the expert hand of carver Nicholas Bernard (d. 1789) early in his career. This set of chairs has long thought to have been made for a member of the Lambert family of New Jersey in the 1760s or 1770s, but their revised early date of production, avant-garde design and considerable expense, suggest another patron, one with both substantial means and fashion-conscious sensibilities. As indicated by the chairs' numbered marks, the original set probably comprised twelve chairs of which nine, including the example offered here, are known to survive. The eight others, all side chairs, are in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Winterthur Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Chipstone Foundation, Colonial Williamsburg, The Dietrich Americana Foundation, the Kaufman Collection and a private collection.
With close parallels to Philadelphia furniture from the late 1740s, this chair was made around 1750, possibly slightly earlier, and is critical evidence of Nicholas Bernard's capabilities and carving style before his partnership with Martin Jugiez (d. 1815). As argued by Luke Beckerdite and Alan Miller, the chair's carved ball-and-claw feet are virtually identical to those on Philadelphia forms that can be firmly ascribed to the years preceding 1750, such as the high chest in fig. 1. Both the feet on the chest and those on this chair are typical of this early time period, with an extra knuckle on the rear talon and small in size, not utilizing the entire dimensions of the stock, and contrast with feet made slightly later such as those on the tables in figs. 3 and 4. While little is known of Bernard's early life, Beckerdite and Miller argue that he trained under or "worked in the shadow of" Samuel Harding, who carved much of the interior architecture of the Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall; as seen in the earliest shell and acanthus-leaf carving attributed to Bernard, he emulated both the composition and techniques of Harding's architectural carving. In contrast, this chair's carved ornament on the crest, splat, stiles, front rail and front legs represents a dramatic departure from Philadelphia precedents. Beckerdite and Miller explain this profound change as a "period of exuberant experimentation," a rebellion against the style of their forbearers that the younger generation of carvers perceived as restrictive. Since the chairs were made before the publication of Chippendale, imported goods and ambition inspired the experimentation of these young carvers (Luke Beckerdite and Alan Miller, "A Table's Tale: Craft, Art, and Opportunity in Eighteenth-Century Philadelphia," American Furniture 2004, Luke Beckerdite, ed. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 2004), pp. 9-10, figs. 13, 14). On this chair, the carved profusion shows the direct influence of British fashions. Bernard's whereabouts prior to the late 1740s are unknown, and he may have trained abroad, possibly in London and his ornamentation of this set of chairs introduced Philadelphians to a new mode of decorative possibilities.
Bernard's distinctive linear style of carving is clearly seen on this chair. Whereas certain passages, such as the delicate floral vine and berry tendrils along the outer crest and stiles, are set against an uncarved ground, other areas display a complex arrangement of foreground and background carving. This latter scheme, seen on the center crest and front rail, employs a background of rocaille work that is set against naturalistic and C-scroll elements. Throughout, the decoration relies heavily on its success as a two-dimensional design and in contrast to the work of other carvers, such as the artisan known as the "Garvan high chest carver" and Bernard's later partner, Jugiez, Bernard's creations emphasizes "the control of line over the sculpting of mass" (Beckerdite and Miller, p. 10). A similar vocabulary including the naturalistic detailing is seen on two tables with carving attributed to Bernard and feet designs indicating slightly later dates of production. The first (figs. 2, 3) has its front rail centered by an asymmetrical rocaille, leaf and C-scroll motif that is virtually the mirror image of the design at the center of this chair's crest. Similarly the second (fig. 4) has front and side rails that are almost entirely covered in a rocaille-carved ground.
Carefully marked twice, on the front rabbet and rear seat rail, this chair is number IIII of the original set of probably twelve side chairs, as suggested by the example at Winterthur Museum marked XII. The remaining chairs are numbered II, V, VII, VIII, IX and X and one, in the Kaufman Collection, is unmarked, possibly representing the chair that would have been marked I. The cabinet shop that made this set is unknown, but the same shop may have been responsible for several other sets of chairs that display similar proportions and frame design. Like this set of chairs, the related examples have high backs, trapezoidal seats that are almost square in shape, rounded front corners, tall seat rails and vertically oriented knee returns that create a downward tension. The result of these details is a design with emphasis on the vertical dimensions, another indication of the chair's early date of production since later Philadelphia chairs feature lower backs and trapezoidal seats with more dramatic splay. One set, represented by a single chair at the Henry Ford Museum, has very closely related back, probably also carved by Bernard, and the same or similar carving along the molded edge of the seat frame; however, the variant rail, leg, and foot decoration show that the chair is clearly from another set than the chair offered here. Another related chair, illustrated in Hornor, features a crest and ears that, though uncarved, share the same crest and scrolled volute ears (Robert Bishop, Centuries and Styles of the American Chair 1640-1970 (New York, 1972), p. 132, figs. 152, 152a; William MacPherson Hornor, Jr., Blue Book Philadelphia Furniture (Washington D.C., 1935), pl. 77; J. Michael Flanigan, American Furniture in the Kaufman Collection (Washington, D.C., 1986), pp. 26-27, cat. 6; Joseph Downs, American Furniture: Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods (New York, 1952), no. 127).
Since chairs from this set first appeared in the marketplace in 1929, curators, dealers and cataloguers have reserved special commentary for their elaborate decoration (see quotes above), while noting their descent in or first ownership by the Lambert family of Lambertville, New Jersey. However, biographical data of the Lambert family combined with the chairs' early date and extraordinary ornament suggests that their first owner hailed from another family. The chair now at Winterthur Museum was the first published and in the 1929 Reifsnyder sale catalogue, it was noted to be "From the Lambert Family, Lambertville, N.J." Subsequent mention the Lambert family history in connection with other chairs from the same set appears to have been largely based on the Reifsnyder reference and the only independent source of this family history may be the 1954 advertisement of John Walton, which notes that the pair he advertised was purchased directly from the Lambert family. Given this history and later dating of the chairs, John Lambert (1746-1823), a political figure prominent both locally and nationally, has previously been cited as a first owner. However, he was too young to have owned chairs in about 1750 and earlier members of his family do not appear to have been successful enough to have owned such an ornate set of chairs. Morrison H. Heckscher notes that the owner of two chairs advertised in 1954 (probably the Walton pair) was also a direct descendant of Emanuel Coryell (b. c.1707-1749), the leading figure of the same New Jersey town, Coryell's Ferry (later the site of George Washington crossing the Delaware) and re-named Lambertville in 1812. Coryell was previously dismissed as a first owner, as he was thought to have died long before the chairs were made, but given their new dating, he may have ordered them shortly before his death, or they could have been first owned by his eldest son, John Coryell (1730-1799), who married in 1753. With such sophisticated ornament, it is also possible that the chairs were made for an urban dweller in Philadelphia and subsequently taken to the Lambertville area in the ensuing years (American Art Association, Inc., Colonial Furniture, The Superb Collection of the Late Howard Reifsnyder, 24-26 April 1929, lot 688; Morrison H. Heckscher, American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Late Colonial Period: The Queen Anne and Chippendale Styles (New York, 1985), pp. 96-97, cat. 51; Oswaldo Rodriguez Roque, American Furniture at Chipstone (Madison, Wisconsin, 1984), cat. 68; J. Michael Flanigan, American Furniture in the Kaufman Collection (Washington, D.C., 1986), pp. 24-25, cat. 5; Joseph Downs, American Furniture: Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods (New York, 1952), cat. 128; Philip D. Zimmerman, "Workmanship as Evidence: A Model for Object Study," Winterthur Portfolio, vol. 16, no. 4 (Winter, 1981), pp. 292-296; for more on the Coryell family, see Sarah A. Gallagher, Early History of Lambertville, N.J., 1703-1903 (Trenton, New Jersey, 1983 reprint), pp. 8-20).
"the apex is reached in the unstinted use of fine carving" Joseph Downs, 1952.
"lavishly endowed with ornate carving" Morrison H. Heckscher, 1985.
This chair illustrates an exceptional moment in American craftsmanship and its profusion of carved ornament provides a visual feast that is rarely seen in eighteenth-century Philadelphia, or any other colonial style center. Pre-dating the publication of Thomas Chippendale's Director (1754), this chair and others from the same original set are arguably the genesis of Philadelphia Rococo, the first appearance of the carved exuberance that would later characterize the most celebrated forms from Philadelphia's Chippendale era. Covering virtually every frontal surface, the rocaille, scrolled and foliate carving envelopes the chair like an embroidered veil and creates an effect of lightness that belies its substantive frame. Linear and intricate, the design and execution of these motifs demonstrate the expert hand of carver Nicholas Bernard (d. 1789) early in his career. This set of chairs has long thought to have been made for a member of the Lambert family of New Jersey in the 1760s or 1770s, but their revised early date of production, avant-garde design and considerable expense, suggest another patron, one with both substantial means and fashion-conscious sensibilities. As indicated by the chairs' numbered marks, the original set probably comprised twelve chairs of which nine, including the example offered here, are known to survive. The eight others, all side chairs, are in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Winterthur Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Chipstone Foundation, Colonial Williamsburg, The Dietrich Americana Foundation, the Kaufman Collection and a private collection.
With close parallels to Philadelphia furniture from the late 1740s, this chair was made around 1750, possibly slightly earlier, and is critical evidence of Nicholas Bernard's capabilities and carving style before his partnership with Martin Jugiez (d. 1815). As argued by Luke Beckerdite and Alan Miller, the chair's carved ball-and-claw feet are virtually identical to those on Philadelphia forms that can be firmly ascribed to the years preceding 1750, such as the high chest in fig. 1. Both the feet on the chest and those on this chair are typical of this early time period, with an extra knuckle on the rear talon and small in size, not utilizing the entire dimensions of the stock, and contrast with feet made slightly later such as those on the tables in figs. 3 and 4. While little is known of Bernard's early life, Beckerdite and Miller argue that he trained under or "worked in the shadow of" Samuel Harding, who carved much of the interior architecture of the Pennsylvania State House, now known as Independence Hall; as seen in the earliest shell and acanthus-leaf carving attributed to Bernard, he emulated both the composition and techniques of Harding's architectural carving. In contrast, this chair's carved ornament on the crest, splat, stiles, front rail and front legs represents a dramatic departure from Philadelphia precedents. Beckerdite and Miller explain this profound change as a "period of exuberant experimentation," a rebellion against the style of their forbearers that the younger generation of carvers perceived as restrictive. Since the chairs were made before the publication of Chippendale, imported goods and ambition inspired the experimentation of these young carvers (Luke Beckerdite and Alan Miller, "A Table's Tale: Craft, Art, and Opportunity in Eighteenth-Century Philadelphia," American Furniture 2004, Luke Beckerdite, ed. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 2004), pp. 9-10, figs. 13, 14). On this chair, the carved profusion shows the direct influence of British fashions. Bernard's whereabouts prior to the late 1740s are unknown, and he may have trained abroad, possibly in London and his ornamentation of this set of chairs introduced Philadelphians to a new mode of decorative possibilities.
Bernard's distinctive linear style of carving is clearly seen on this chair. Whereas certain passages, such as the delicate floral vine and berry tendrils along the outer crest and stiles, are set against an uncarved ground, other areas display a complex arrangement of foreground and background carving. This latter scheme, seen on the center crest and front rail, employs a background of rocaille work that is set against naturalistic and C-scroll elements. Throughout, the decoration relies heavily on its success as a two-dimensional design and in contrast to the work of other carvers, such as the artisan known as the "Garvan high chest carver" and Bernard's later partner, Jugiez, Bernard's creations emphasizes "the control of line over the sculpting of mass" (Beckerdite and Miller, p. 10). A similar vocabulary including the naturalistic detailing is seen on two tables with carving attributed to Bernard and feet designs indicating slightly later dates of production. The first (figs. 2, 3) has its front rail centered by an asymmetrical rocaille, leaf and C-scroll motif that is virtually the mirror image of the design at the center of this chair's crest. Similarly the second (fig. 4) has front and side rails that are almost entirely covered in a rocaille-carved ground.
Carefully marked twice, on the front rabbet and rear seat rail, this chair is number IIII of the original set of probably twelve side chairs, as suggested by the example at Winterthur Museum marked XII. The remaining chairs are numbered II, V, VII, VIII, IX and X and one, in the Kaufman Collection, is unmarked, possibly representing the chair that would have been marked I. The cabinet shop that made this set is unknown, but the same shop may have been responsible for several other sets of chairs that display similar proportions and frame design. Like this set of chairs, the related examples have high backs, trapezoidal seats that are almost square in shape, rounded front corners, tall seat rails and vertically oriented knee returns that create a downward tension. The result of these details is a design with emphasis on the vertical dimensions, another indication of the chair's early date of production since later Philadelphia chairs feature lower backs and trapezoidal seats with more dramatic splay. One set, represented by a single chair at the Henry Ford Museum, has very closely related back, probably also carved by Bernard, and the same or similar carving along the molded edge of the seat frame; however, the variant rail, leg, and foot decoration show that the chair is clearly from another set than the chair offered here. Another related chair, illustrated in Hornor, features a crest and ears that, though uncarved, share the same crest and scrolled volute ears (Robert Bishop, Centuries and Styles of the American Chair 1640-1970 (New York, 1972), p. 132, figs. 152, 152a; William MacPherson Hornor, Jr., Blue Book Philadelphia Furniture (Washington D.C., 1935), pl. 77; J. Michael Flanigan, American Furniture in the Kaufman Collection (Washington, D.C., 1986), pp. 26-27, cat. 6; Joseph Downs, American Furniture: Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods (New York, 1952), no. 127).
Since chairs from this set first appeared in the marketplace in 1929, curators, dealers and cataloguers have reserved special commentary for their elaborate decoration (see quotes above), while noting their descent in or first ownership by the Lambert family of Lambertville, New Jersey. However, biographical data of the Lambert family combined with the chairs' early date and extraordinary ornament suggests that their first owner hailed from another family. The chair now at Winterthur Museum was the first published and in the 1929 Reifsnyder sale catalogue, it was noted to be "From the Lambert Family, Lambertville, N.J." Subsequent mention the Lambert family history in connection with other chairs from the same set appears to have been largely based on the Reifsnyder reference and the only independent source of this family history may be the 1954 advertisement of John Walton, which notes that the pair he advertised was purchased directly from the Lambert family. Given this history and later dating of the chairs, John Lambert (1746-1823), a political figure prominent both locally and nationally, has previously been cited as a first owner. However, he was too young to have owned chairs in about 1750 and earlier members of his family do not appear to have been successful enough to have owned such an ornate set of chairs. Morrison H. Heckscher notes that the owner of two chairs advertised in 1954 (probably the Walton pair) was also a direct descendant of Emanuel Coryell (b. c.1707-1749), the leading figure of the same New Jersey town, Coryell's Ferry (later the site of George Washington crossing the Delaware) and re-named Lambertville in 1812. Coryell was previously dismissed as a first owner, as he was thought to have died long before the chairs were made, but given their new dating, he may have ordered them shortly before his death, or they could have been first owned by his eldest son, John Coryell (1730-1799), who married in 1753. With such sophisticated ornament, it is also possible that the chairs were made for an urban dweller in Philadelphia and subsequently taken to the Lambertville area in the ensuing years (American Art Association, Inc., Colonial Furniture, The Superb Collection of the Late Howard Reifsnyder, 24-26 April 1929, lot 688; Morrison H. Heckscher, American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Late Colonial Period: The Queen Anne and Chippendale Styles (New York, 1985), pp. 96-97, cat. 51; Oswaldo Rodriguez Roque, American Furniture at Chipstone (Madison, Wisconsin, 1984), cat. 68; J. Michael Flanigan, American Furniture in the Kaufman Collection (Washington, D.C., 1986), pp. 24-25, cat. 5; Joseph Downs, American Furniture: Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods (New York, 1952), cat. 128; Philip D. Zimmerman, "Workmanship as Evidence: A Model for Object Study," Winterthur Portfolio, vol. 16, no. 4 (Winter, 1981), pp. 292-296; for more on the Coryell family, see Sarah A. Gallagher, Early History of Lambertville, N.J., 1703-1903 (Trenton, New Jersey, 1983 reprint), pp. 8-20).