ATTRIBUTED TO C.R. ASHBEE (1863-1942) FOR JOHN BROADWOOD & SONS
ARTS & CRAFTS DUET STOOL, CIRCA 1904
£2,772
Auction: Day One | Lots 1 to 252 | Wednesday 16th April from 10am
Description
walnut and ebonised wood, with cast steel strap hinges and later close-nailed leather upholstered seat, made by Guild of Handicrafts
Dimensions
109.5cm wide, 49cm high, 45.5cm deep
Footnote
Ashbee's deliberately unconventional style particularly focussed on his designs for pianos around 1904. Both his wife and his mother were talented pianists and besides, 'artists and architects of advanced tastes had been interested in reforming the design of piano cases for some time'. Burne-Jones with W.A.S. Benson had produced a design in 1879 which replaced the deep curves and massive legs of the high Victorian era with a treatment closer to late 18th century harpsichords and these 'Reformed' or 'Artistic' forms provoked 'steady interest' from then onwards. Ashbee's first design was for his wife Janet in 1900 and was 'shocking' in its subversion of convention. The cabinet work was carried out by Broadwood & Co. and the heavy cast hinges were made by the Guild of Handicrafts. The form was square and reflected the piano forms of the late 18th century but with hinged doors to the front. This stool reflects these new cases, with its broad pierced handles and fine cabinet work.
Examples of Broadwood pianos designed by Ashbee are in the collections of the Huntingdon Library, Pasadena, Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum and Standen House, Surrey.