Dressing Table
1931 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This dressing table was designed by Ambrose Heal (1872-1959, OBE 1933) and made by Heal and Son in 1931. It is part of a suite of bedroom furniture made for the writer Dodie Smith for her flat in Dorset Square, London.
Before finding success as a writer Dodie first tried her hand at acting, but found little success. She then joined Heal and Son in 1923 where she was responsible for buying and selling toys, prints and decorative goods in the 'Little Gallery'. Smith worked at Heal's until 1932 and it was during this time that she wrote her first play, 'Autumn Crocus'. It was staged in 1931 at the Lyric Theatre, London and its success led her to take and furnish a flat in Dorset Square. Heal's offered to provide all the furniture at cost price but the playwright had something very particular in mind for her bedroom. Having a dislike for conventional wardrobes and chests-of-drawers she suggested purchasing the furniture for that room at Italia House instead. However, Sir Ambrose was horrified at this idea which would have meant buying reproduction furniture, and so he offered to design a suite exactly to her liking.
The decor of the bedroom at Dorset Square was cream and gold, so the bedroom furniture was painted cream and incised with gold lines to match this. Other pieces in the same suite included two wardrobes, a bedhead and a stool. In 1934 Smith left the flat in Dorset Square and found that the furniture did not suit her next or subsequent homes. From this point onwards the suite was alternately loaned out or kept in store until 1981 when it was acquired by the V&A.
Before finding success as a writer Dodie first tried her hand at acting, but found little success. She then joined Heal and Son in 1923 where she was responsible for buying and selling toys, prints and decorative goods in the 'Little Gallery'. Smith worked at Heal's until 1932 and it was during this time that she wrote her first play, 'Autumn Crocus'. It was staged in 1931 at the Lyric Theatre, London and its success led her to take and furnish a flat in Dorset Square. Heal's offered to provide all the furniture at cost price but the playwright had something very particular in mind for her bedroom. Having a dislike for conventional wardrobes and chests-of-drawers she suggested purchasing the furniture for that room at Italia House instead. However, Sir Ambrose was horrified at this idea which would have meant buying reproduction furniture, and so he offered to design a suite exactly to her liking.
The decor of the bedroom at Dorset Square was cream and gold, so the bedroom furniture was painted cream and incised with gold lines to match this. Other pieces in the same suite included two wardrobes, a bedhead and a stool. In 1934 Smith left the flat in Dorset Square and found that the furniture did not suit her next or subsequent homes. From this point onwards the suite was alternately loaned out or kept in store until 1981 when it was acquired by the V&A.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 5 parts.
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| Materials and techniques | Laminboard, glue and screwed together, painted cream and gold |
| Brief description | Dressing table, laminboard painted white with gold decoration; designed by Sir Ambrose Heal, made by Heal and Son, England, 1931 |
| Physical description | Dressing table with three drawers and a mirror; made of laminboard painted cream and gold; the sides are made up of a a full depth board rebated near the bottom with the last couple of inches tapering inwards slightly at front, back and sides; three drawers are arranged laterally beneath the table top, the central drawer is slightly wider than the other two, each has a horizontal rectangular wooden handle which has been painted gold; the vertical front edges of the table sides and the horizontal front edge of the table top have a simple stepped moulding painted gold; the mirror has a bevelled edge and is shaped to parallel that of the cupboards in the suite (i.e. rebated near the top and then the sides taper inwards slightly); it is attached to a board of the same shape with small metal clips and the whole is in turn attached to a backboard which extends below the bottom of the mirror and its board, this is then screwed into the back of the table top from behind thereby securing the mirror to the dressing table. Construction of the central drawer: the drawer front is dovetailed to the drawer sides; a groove approximately 1cm from the bottom edge of the drawer sides and front houses the drawer bottom which is slid in from the back; a dust bead with an ovolo moulding running the depth of the drawer interior is glued down at either side, drawer back is dovetailed to the drawer sides. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Unique |
| Summary | This dressing table was designed by Ambrose Heal (1872-1959, OBE 1933) and made by Heal and Son in 1931. It is part of a suite of bedroom furniture made for the writer Dodie Smith for her flat in Dorset Square, London. Before finding success as a writer Dodie first tried her hand at acting, but found little success. She then joined Heal and Son in 1923 where she was responsible for buying and selling toys, prints and decorative goods in the 'Little Gallery'. Smith worked at Heal's until 1932 and it was during this time that she wrote her first play, 'Autumn Crocus'. It was staged in 1931 at the Lyric Theatre, London and its success led her to take and furnish a flat in Dorset Square. Heal's offered to provide all the furniture at cost price but the playwright had something very particular in mind for her bedroom. Having a dislike for conventional wardrobes and chests-of-drawers she suggested purchasing the furniture for that room at Italia House instead. However, Sir Ambrose was horrified at this idea which would have meant buying reproduction furniture, and so he offered to design a suite exactly to her liking. The decor of the bedroom at Dorset Square was cream and gold, so the bedroom furniture was painted cream and incised with gold lines to match this. Other pieces in the same suite included two wardrobes, a bedhead and a stool. In 1934 Smith left the flat in Dorset Square and found that the furniture did not suit her next or subsequent homes. From this point onwards the suite was alternately loaned out or kept in store until 1981 when it was acquired by the V&A. |
| Associated object | W.35-1981 (Set) |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.33:4-1981 |
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| Record created | May 3, 2007 |
| Record URL |
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