Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
British Galleries, Room 125, Edwin and Susan Davies Gallery

Candle Sconce

ca. 1910 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Object Type
This sconce (wall light) was designed and made by the designer and furniture-maker Ernest Gimson (1864-1919). Gimson's metal sconces are related to his furniture designs through their use of decorative motifs such acorns and oak leaves and exposed technical features such as rivets.

People
Ernest Gimson was a designer and furniture maker closely associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement. In 1881 he began training with a Leicester architect, Isaac Barradale. In 1886, on completion of his training and with the recommendation of the designer William Morris (1834-1896), he was recruited to the office of the architect J.D. Sedding (1838-1891). It was there that he met Ernest Barnsley (1863-1926). In 1895 he set up a furniture workshop in the Cotswolds with Barnsley and the latter's brother Sidney (1865-1926). He also integrated his work into the life of the local community by training villagers to become fine craftsmen.

Materials & Making
Gimson's typically 'Arts and Crafts' attitude towards his work involved using local woods. He often highlighted their colour and natural markings by incorporating them prominently into the design, and exposing technical features such as pins and dovetail joints. From about 1902 he began to design a series of sconces, firedogs (decorated iron bars for supporting logs and coal in a fireplace), hinges, etc., in iron or brass which were vaguely reminiscent of a 17th-century style.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Brass, pierced and engraved
Brief description
Brass, Gloucestershire, ca.1910, designed and made by Ernest Gimson
Physical description
The design is a pattern of English oak leaves and acorns. The two candle sockets set in a projecting tray with a raised edge. The back with rounded top is engraved and pierced in the form of a conventional oak tree with acorns.
Dimensions
  • Height: 25.4cm
  • Width: 17.8cm
  • Base depth: 9.5cm
Dimensions checked: Measured; 05/12/2000 by annette
Gallery label
British Galleries: Ernest Gimson was one of the most influential and committed of Arts and Crafts designers. He was known chiefly for his furniture, but these sconces show his proficiency in metalwork. The motifs of acorns and oak leaves reflect the Arts and Crafts nostalgia for the English countryside.(27/03/2003)
Object history
Designed and made in Gloucestershire by Ernest W. Gimson (born in Leicester, 1864, died in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, 1919)
Subjects depicted
Summary
Object Type
This sconce (wall light) was designed and made by the designer and furniture-maker Ernest Gimson (1864-1919). Gimson's metal sconces are related to his furniture designs through their use of decorative motifs such acorns and oak leaves and exposed technical features such as rivets.

People
Ernest Gimson was a designer and furniture maker closely associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement. In 1881 he began training with a Leicester architect, Isaac Barradale. In 1886, on completion of his training and with the recommendation of the designer William Morris (1834-1896), he was recruited to the office of the architect J.D. Sedding (1838-1891). It was there that he met Ernest Barnsley (1863-1926). In 1895 he set up a furniture workshop in the Cotswolds with Barnsley and the latter's brother Sidney (1865-1926). He also integrated his work into the life of the local community by training villagers to become fine craftsmen.

Materials & Making
Gimson's typically 'Arts and Crafts' attitude towards his work involved using local woods. He often highlighted their colour and natural markings by incorporating them prominently into the design, and exposing technical features such as pins and dovetail joints. From about 1902 he began to design a series of sconces, firedogs (decorated iron bars for supporting logs and coal in a fireplace), hinges, etc., in iron or brass which were vaguely reminiscent of a 17th-century style.
Associated object
Collection
Accession number
M.32-1939

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Record createdDecember 15, 1999
Record URL
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