Lyman Allyn Art Museum
Connecticut College
New London, CT
860.443.2545
Lyman Allyn Museum of Art at Connecticut
College Acquires Rare Chippendale Chair
Lyman Allyn Museum of Art at Connecticut
College announces its acquisition of a rare Chippendale mahogany side chair
with original gilt leather upholstery crafted in Norwich, Connecticut, c.
1785. This unique piece may be the only surviving example of original 18th
century gilt leather on American seating furniture. It will be on display
in the museum's Stamm Galleries as a part of a new exhibition entitled Colorful
Survivors: Embossed Leather from Eighteenth Century Norwich, on view through
December 12, 1999.
Colorful
Survivors: Embossed Leather from Eighteenth Century Norwich, curated by Lyman Allyn conservator Lance Mayer, features not
only the Chippendale chair which is a new addition to the museum's permanent
collection, but a Norwich trunk covered with the same unique embossed leather,
recently acquired by The Connecticut Historical Society and on loan to Lyman
Allyn for this special exhibition. The Norwich trunk is lined with pages
of the Norwich Courier dated 1805. Photographs and explanatory text
panels are used to tell the story of these two objects and their unique
relationship. A companion exhibit, Furniture and Other Decorative Arts
in Eastern Connecticut, 1750 - 1800, will feature other excellent pieces
from the museum's permanent collection, dating from the 18th century, to
augment the Colorful Survivors: Embossed Leather from Eighteenth Century
Norwich exhibit and will also remain on view through December 12, 1999.
(left: Side chair, Norwich, Connecticut, 1770-1805, possibly
by Felix Huntington (1749-1822), Mahogany maple and pine, seat covered with
embossed and poIychromed leather imported from the Netherlands; height 38
1/4, width 21, seat depth 17 1/8, seat height 17 1/4 inches, Lyman Allyn
Museum of Art at Connecticut College)
The richly colored, embossed leather of the Chippendale
chair and the Norwich trunk vividly demonstrate a taste for imported luxury
and full-blown Rococo design not commonly associated with their provenance
of 18th century Norwich, the style center of southeastern Connecticut' s
New London County.
The Chippendale chair acquired by Lyman Allyn has a serpentine
crest rail with carved scrolled ears above a pierced "owl's eyes"
splat. The over-the-rail upholstered trapezoid seat is embellished with
embossed, floral-patterned gilt or Spanish leather secured with oval-headed
tacks. The molded Marlborough legs are joined by molded box stretchers.
The finish on the mahogany is old, probably the original.
Please see: Colorful Survivors: Embossed
Leather from Eighteenth Century Norwich (10/9/99)
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Colorful
Survivors: Embossed Leather from Eighteenth Century Norwich, curated by Lyman Allyn conservator Lance Mayer, features not
only the Chippendale chair which is a new addition to the museum's permanent
collection, but a Norwich trunk covered with the same unique embossed leather,
recently acquired by The Connecticut Historical Society and on loan to Lyman
Allyn for this special exhibition. The Norwich trunk is lined with pages
of the Norwich Courier dated 1805. Photographs and explanatory text
panels are used to tell the story of these two objects and their unique
relationship. A companion exhibit, Furniture and Other Decorative Arts
in Eastern Connecticut, 1750 - 1800, will feature other excellent pieces
from the museum's permanent collection, dating from the 18th century, to
augment the Colorful Survivors: Embossed Leather from Eighteenth Century
Norwich exhibit and will also remain on view through December 12, 1999.
(left: Side chair, Norwich, Connecticut, 1770-1805, possibly
by Felix Huntington (1749-1822), Mahogany maple and pine, seat covered with
embossed and poIychromed leather imported from the Netherlands; height 38
1/4, width 21, seat depth 17 1/8, seat height 17 1/4 inches, Lyman Allyn
Museum of Art at Connecticut College)