Stool
1931 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This stool 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 had 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 bedroom furniture she suggested purchasing the items 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 include two cupboards, a bedhead and a dressing table. 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 had 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 bedroom furniture she suggested purchasing the items 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 include two cupboards, a bedhead and a dressing table. 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 | |
| Materials and techniques | Laminboard painted and upholstered |
| Brief description | Stool, laminboard painted cream and gold; designed by Ambrose Heal and made by Heal and Son Ltd for Dodie Smith, British 1931 |
| Physical description | Stool made of laminboard, painted cream and gold with a yellow, white and gold woven textile upholstered drop-in seat; the legs are made up of upright boards extending the full depth of the seat; they are rebated near the bottom from where they taper at front, back and sides down to floor level; the front and back seat rails are tenoned into the tops of the legs; the seat rails and legs are all rebated along their inner top edge to provide a ledge for the drop-in seat; the angle between the legs and the front and back rails is supported by ogee shaped corner blocks which are skew-screwed in; all the visible edges of the legs and seat rails have a stepped moulding which is painted gold. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Unique |
| Summary | This stool 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 had 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 bedroom furniture she suggested purchasing the items 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 include two cupboards, a bedhead and a dressing table. 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.33:1-1981 (Set) |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.35-1981 |
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| Record created | May 3, 2007 |
| Record URL |
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