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Drawing

mid 1770s (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This design is part of a group of over 900 drawings of frames, mainly for pier glasses, overmantels, and girandoles. Many of these workshop designs share similar characteristics such as leaf scrolls and festoons of husks. Most of them are numbered, contain information about who ordered them, the date, the price (written in code), the colour of the frame and the dimensions of the finished object.

The drawings from John Linnell's workshop survive over the period 1773 to 1783. From April 1773 to August 1778, the workshop produced about twelve pieces a month. Production decreased over the next two years to 3 or 4 pieces a month. In 1783 these designs were no longer produced.

Robert Adam, a leading architect, was a key influence on the neoclassical designs of John Linnell. Linnell worked with Adam for the first time at Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire, and they worked together on a number of other occasions. In the early 1770s festoons of husks began to be used on pier glasses and they are very prominent within these workshop designs.

John Linnell (1729-1796) was the son of the famous furniture maker William Linnell (ca. 1703-1763). Unlike most furniture makers, John Linnell gained a design education at the St. Martin's Lane Academy, which was founded by William Hogarth in 1735. In 1750, aged 21, he joined his father's firm as a designer. On his father's death in 1763, John Linnell took over the family firm. During his lifetime John Linnell produced high quality furniture, which rivalled that of other leading furniture makers such as Thomas Chippendale, John Cobb and William Ince and John Mayhew.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Ink, pencil, yellow watercolour
Brief description
5 designs for frames; John Linnell.
Physical description
'No. 91' A design for an oval pier glass. Husk festoons fall from the animal head handles of the urn finial. The frame also features acanthus scrolls. The apron features a patera.

'No. 90' A design for an oval pier glass. Half of the design is highly finished, the other half is less detailed. The frame is vertically aligned and features neoclassical moulding. From the large s-scroll handles of the oval urn finial fall husk festoons, supported by acanthus scrolls around the sides. The finial sits on top of two c-scrolls. The apron features a ram's head, acanthus scrolls and husk swags.

'No. 89' A design for a rectangular frame, with a serpentine top. Half of the design is highly finished, the other half is less detailed. The frame is vertically aligned. The urn finial features neoclassical moulding and scrolls. Husk festoons fall from the c-scroll handles of the urn. Acanthus scrolls sit on each corner of the frame. The gaps between these scrolls are joined by husks. The apron features a patera, further acanthus decoration and husk festoons. The frame features neoclassical moulding.

'No. 88' A design for an oval pier glass. Half of the design is highly finished, the other half is less detailed. The frame is vertically aligned. The frame features neoclassical moulding. The crest is topped by an anthemion which sits on a long cylindrical base. Two large acanthus s-scrolls also support the anthemion. Festoons fall from the top of these scrolls, following the line of the mirror. The apron features a large animal head with leaf scrolls and husks.

'No. 87' A design for an oval pier glass. Half of the design is highly finished, the other half is barely sketched. The frame is vertically aligned. The frame features neoclassical moulding. A large urn in a curved triangular shape, sits on top of a scalloped base. A ram's head is placed under this base. The base is supported by three scrolls. Husk festoons fall along the sides of the mirror culminating in an apron of acanthus scrolls and a festoon.
Dimensions
  • Mount height: 54.5cm
  • Mount width: 74.6cm
  • Design height: 31.2cm
  • Design width: 55.4cm
Style
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'No. 91' 'Mrs Hatch 1 frame in Repd white 16 1/2-14' '3 feet' '[J:J]m:[2]'
  • 'No. 90' 'Mr De Baufre 2 29-21' '1 Do-----20-15 B.gold' '29-21' 'm:2:2'
  • 'No. 89' 'Lord Du[c]ey 2 in B. gold Septr 3d 1773' '38 1/4' '29 1/2' '27 3/4' '27 3/8' '22' '0:H:2 frame only'
  • 'No. 88' 'Mr Harrop 1-25-19 B. gold' 'Moulding 1 5/8' 'aug' '2 ft' '4:4'
  • 'No. 87' 'Mr Cary 1 Black & gold aug 7-' 'Mr York 1 Blue & wt-Do-' 'Mr Spidel 1 28-20 B. gold-' '4 ft'
Subjects depicted
Summary
This design is part of a group of over 900 drawings of frames, mainly for pier glasses, overmantels, and girandoles. Many of these workshop designs share similar characteristics such as leaf scrolls and festoons of husks. Most of them are numbered, contain information about who ordered them, the date, the price (written in code), the colour of the frame and the dimensions of the finished object.

The drawings from John Linnell's workshop survive over the period 1773 to 1783. From April 1773 to August 1778, the workshop produced about twelve pieces a month. Production decreased over the next two years to 3 or 4 pieces a month. In 1783 these designs were no longer produced.

Robert Adam, a leading architect, was a key influence on the neoclassical designs of John Linnell. Linnell worked with Adam for the first time at Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire, and they worked together on a number of other occasions. In the early 1770s festoons of husks began to be used on pier glasses and they are very prominent within these workshop designs.

John Linnell (1729-1796) was the son of the famous furniture maker William Linnell (ca. 1703-1763). Unlike most furniture makers, John Linnell gained a design education at the St. Martin's Lane Academy, which was founded by William Hogarth in 1735. In 1750, aged 21, he joined his father's firm as a designer. On his father's death in 1763, John Linnell took over the family firm. During his lifetime John Linnell produced high quality furniture, which rivalled that of other leading furniture makers such as Thomas Chippendale, John Cobb and William Ince and John Mayhew.
Bibliographic references
  • Helena Hayward and Pat Kirkham,William and John Linnell; eighteenth century London furniture makers (London, ca. 1980).
  • Victoria and Albert Museum, Department of Engraving, Illustration and Design, Accessions 1911, London, Printed for His Majesty’s Stationery Office 1912
Collection
Accession number
E.3481-1911

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
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