Lot 540
SIR BASIL SPENCE (1907-1976) FOR H. MORRIS & CO., GLASGOW
RARE 'ALLEGRO' ARMCHAIR, DESIGNED 1947-1948
Auction: 3 April 2019 at 12:00 BST
Description
laminated wood, with drop-in seat, later covered, bears maker's label MORRIS MADE/ GUARANTEED TRADE MARK/ GLASGOW
Dimensions
54cm wide, 86cm high, 50cm deep
Footnote
Literature: Studio Yearbook of Decorative Art, 1949, p. VIII (advertised)
'Austerity to Affluence: British Art & Design 1945-1962', The Fine Art Society, London, 1997, p. 14 and p. 22, cat. no. F27 (an example of chair illustrated)
Long, Philip and Thomas, Jane (Edit.) 'Basil Spence', Architect National Galleries of Scotland in Association with RCAHMS, Edinburgh 2008, p. 52 and p. 54, fig 55 illus.
Note: Sir Basil Spence was one of the leading British architects of the 20th century, whose monumental or 'brutalist' style came to define modern architecture in Britain. Noted commissions include designs for several exhibitions including the Sea and Ships Pavilion for the Festival of Britain (1951), Sussex University (1962), Glasgow Airport (1966), and Coventry Cathedral (1954-1962), for which he received a knighthood. In 1947 Neil Morris of manufacturers Morris of Glasgow asked Spence to collaborate on a range of plywood furniture he was working on, which was to include his Bambi chair and celebrated Cloud table. The result was the Allegro dining suite, which was awarded a diploma by the Council of Industrial Design in January 1949. In March of the same year it was exhibited at the Glasgow Today and Tomorrow, where it was commended, and an example of the armchair was commissioned by the Museum of Modern Art, New York for their collection. In September 1949 it was displayed at the Morris stand, also designed by Spence, at the Scottish Industries Exhibition. In 1951 another single armchair was commissioned for the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum in London (V&A CIRC.183-1951).