Lot 133
ARTHUR W. SIMPSON OF KENDAL (1857-1922)
ARTS & CRAFTS CARVED OAK WARDROBE, CIRCA 1910
Decorative Arts: Design Since 1860
Auction: 11 April 2018 at 12:00 BST
Description
the projecting moulded cornice above four doors, each carved with a panel of flowers over two drawers raised on square supports with carved brackets, with applied characteristic patinated brass handles
Dimensions
157cm wide, 190cm high, 63cm deep
Footnote
Note: Arthur William Simpson was born in Kendal, Cumbria 1857 and was apprenticed to Gillows of Lancaster in 1875 and worked at a number of workshops until setting up his own in Kendal in 1885, known as the Handicrafts. He was a follower of John Ruskin and in 1889 one piece was accepted by the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society. It was there that he would have met the architect Charles Voysey who became a great influence on his work; his designs became more architectural and simpler with less carving; this wardrobe, designed circa 1910, being a good example. By 1912, Simpson was exhibiting alongside Voysey and Walton in the Ideal Home Exhibition at Olympia. His entire stand was sold to one client. He was commissioned to carve panels for Blackwell House, designed by Baillie Scott for Sir Edward Holt and such was his skill he was entrusted by Voysey to make a number of furniture commissions.