The Cawdor Candlestick
Candlestick
ca. 1903 (made)
ca. 1903 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
This is a pair with museum number CIRC.124A-1959. The simple, elegant geometric elements of these candelabra, constructed from polished steel and copper are typical of the designs in the Glasgow style at the turn of the 20th century.
People
George Walton was born the youngest of 12 children. Because of family financial difficulties he became a bank clerk for the British Linen Bank in 1881. While working for the bank, he attended evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art (his only formal training), and in 1888 he set up a successful design and decorating business known as George Walton & Co., Ecclesiastical and House Decorators. Wider recognition came in 1896-1897, when he was commissioned to fit out Kate Cranston's Buchanan Street tea room in Glasgow. Walton made the overall interior design for the four-storey tea rooms, and Charles Rennie Mackintosh provided the stencilled mural decoration.
Design & Designing
George Walton has been seen, in parallel with Charles Rennie Mackintosh, as the founder of the Glasgow style. Walton's designs have the simplicity and clarity associated with that group, but they are less effete and more solid than those of Mackintosh. To some extent Walton looked back to the achievements of the Arts and Crafts movement while at the same time moving away from their earthy, rural qualities to a more urban sophistication.
This is a pair with museum number CIRC.124A-1959. The simple, elegant geometric elements of these candelabra, constructed from polished steel and copper are typical of the designs in the Glasgow style at the turn of the 20th century.
People
George Walton was born the youngest of 12 children. Because of family financial difficulties he became a bank clerk for the British Linen Bank in 1881. While working for the bank, he attended evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art (his only formal training), and in 1888 he set up a successful design and decorating business known as George Walton & Co., Ecclesiastical and House Decorators. Wider recognition came in 1896-1897, when he was commissioned to fit out Kate Cranston's Buchanan Street tea room in Glasgow. Walton made the overall interior design for the four-storey tea rooms, and Charles Rennie Mackintosh provided the stencilled mural decoration.
Design & Designing
George Walton has been seen, in parallel with Charles Rennie Mackintosh, as the founder of the Glasgow style. Walton's designs have the simplicity and clarity associated with that group, but they are less effete and more solid than those of Mackintosh. To some extent Walton looked back to the achievements of the Arts and Crafts movement while at the same time moving away from their earthy, rural qualities to a more urban sophistication.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Cawdor Candlestick (popular title) |
| Materials and techniques | Polished iron and copper |
| Brief description | One of 'The Cawdor' candlesticks, designed by George Walton, Glasgow, ca.1888 |
| Physical description | One of a pair of candlesticks made from polished iron and copper. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Gallery label | British Galleries:
In some cases the work of Scottish designers like George Walton shows similarity to the Arts and Crafts style, but with a distinctive twist. These candlesticks are made in polished iron and copper, a combination which gives them a more sophisticated, urban style than brass, which an Arts and Crafts designer would probably have chosen.(27/03/2003) |
| Object history | These candlesticks were exhibited at the Arts and Crafts Society Exhibition of 1903 and an original photograph of Walton's display area still exists showing the candlesticks standing on top of a sideboard. Designed by George Walton (born in Glasgow, 1867, died in 1933) |
| Summary | Object Type This is a pair with museum number CIRC.124A-1959. The simple, elegant geometric elements of these candelabra, constructed from polished steel and copper are typical of the designs in the Glasgow style at the turn of the 20th century. People George Walton was born the youngest of 12 children. Because of family financial difficulties he became a bank clerk for the British Linen Bank in 1881. While working for the bank, he attended evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art (his only formal training), and in 1888 he set up a successful design and decorating business known as George Walton & Co., Ecclesiastical and House Decorators. Wider recognition came in 1896-1897, when he was commissioned to fit out Kate Cranston's Buchanan Street tea room in Glasgow. Walton made the overall interior design for the four-storey tea rooms, and Charles Rennie Mackintosh provided the stencilled mural decoration. Design & Designing George Walton has been seen, in parallel with Charles Rennie Mackintosh, as the founder of the Glasgow style. Walton's designs have the simplicity and clarity associated with that group, but they are less effete and more solid than those of Mackintosh. To some extent Walton looked back to the achievements of the Arts and Crafts movement while at the same time moving away from their earthy, rural qualities to a more urban sophistication. |
| Associated object | CIRC.124A-1959 (Set) |
| Bibliographic reference | Greenhalgh, Paul (Ed.), Art Nouveau: 1890-1914 . London: V&A Publications, 2000
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | CIRC.124-1959 |
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| Record created | June 1, 1998 |
| Record URL |
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