The Secular Furniture of E.W. Godwin: with Catalogue Raisonné - Hardcover

Weber, Susan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300081596 ISBN 13: 9780300081596

Publisher: Yale University Press, 1999

Synopsis

Victorian architect-designer E. W. Godwin (1833-1886), tying himself neither morally nor aesthetically to a single style, approached design with what he called "judicious eclecticism." Seeking to design furniture appropriate to the needs of modern living, he grappled with the problems of affordability, utility, and function and experimented with modular and fitted furniture decades before it became popular in the mid-twentieth century. This book is the first comprehensive study of Godwin's furniture designs. Taking the form of a catalogue raisonne, the book documents and reproduces all known examples of his secular furniture and related furniture designs. Susan Weber Soros traces the development of Godwin's style, examines its sources, and assesses the historical importance of his work. She discusses how Godwin combined antiquarian interests with the study of more recent design traditions from different parts of the world, including Japan. Godwin worked in six major styles: Gothic revival, Anglo-Japanese, Anglo-Greek, Anglo-Egyptian, Queen Anne or Cottage style, and Old English or Jacobean. Soros also describes his work for leading art manufacturers; the work he exhibited at great international exhibits in Vienna, Philadelphia, and Paris; and his role as designer of choice for such leading artists of his generation as James McNeill Whistler and Oscar Wilde.

About this title

From the Publisher:

Reviews
'I cannot think of an exhibition catalogue published in Britain in the last year which is so impressive and coherent in its scholarship.' - Christopher Woodward - World of Interiors

'a sumptuously illustrated and meticulously documented catalogue raisonne of the whole range of his furniture.'- James Joll - Times Literary Supplement

About the Author:

Susan Weber Soros is founder and director of the Bard Graduate Center for Studies in the Decorative Arts, Design, and Culture. She is coauthor of "Thomas Jeckyll: Architect and Designer, 1827-1881" and coeditor of "Castellani and Italian Archaeological Jewelry," both published by Yale University Press.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0300081596
• ISBN 13: 9780300081596
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 298