Chippendale Chair with Grandmother pattern
- Object:
- Place of origin:
- Date:
- Artist/Maker:
Venturi Scott Brown (designer)
Knoll International (maker)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Credit Line:
Given by the manufacturer
- Museum number:
- Gallery location:
- Image in copyright
This chair, designed by the architects Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown, has been celebrated for re-introducing decoration and historic form into contemporary furniture. The name of the chair refers to the designs of Thomas Chippendale, the most famous British furniture designer of the 18th century. Venturi used Chippendale's designs for chairbacks as an inspiration for this model but the materials, techniques and design of the chair differ radically from that of the 18th century designer.
The chair is constructed of plywood, with a simple cut-out detailing on the back rest of the chair. The laminate used to coat the plywood is decorated with floral emblems and what has been described by the design team as, an 'ant pattern'.
Physical description
Laminated plywood chair with a plastic floral laminate surface.
Place of Origin
New York, USA (made)
Date
1984 (made)
Artist/maker
Venturi Scott Brown (designer)
Knoll International (maker)
Materials and Techniques
Laminated plywood
Dimensions
Height: 98 cm, Width: 69 cm, Depth: 63.5 cm
Descriptive line
Robert Venturi, Chair, Chippendale with 'Grandmother' pattern, 1984. man. Knoll International
Exhibition History
Twentieth Century Study Gallery - Permanent Display (Victoria and Albert Museum)
Collecting for the future
Collecting for the future (01/06/1990-30/06/1990)
Labels and date
"CHIPPENDALE" CHAIR with "Grandmother" pattern decoration
Designed by Robert Venturi (American, b. 1925)
Laminated plywood with plastic laminate surface
Manufactured by Knoll International, New York, USA
1984
This chair was much celebrated for reintroducing decoration / and historic form in to the mainstream of contemporary furniture. It was collected due to it's notoriety and of that of / the designer, a celebrated American architect and theorist and designer of the Sainsbury extension to the National Gallery.
CHAIR: CHIPPENDALE WITH 'GRANDMOTHER' PATTERN
Designed by Robert Venturi ( North American, born 1925)
Made by Knoll International, New York, USA, 1984
Laminated plywood with plastic laminate surface
Given by the manufacturer
W.21-1990
Designed by the architect (designer of the recent extension to the National Gallery), it is one of a series of chairs based in literally superficial interpretations of historic styles. Although cut-out plywood is normally an inexpensive manufacturing technology, this series proved too expensive for the market place and is no longer produced.
Materials
Plywood; Plastic laminate
Techniques
Cut-out
Subjects depicted
Flowers
Categories
Furniture
Collection code
FWK
