Decorative High Backed Armchair Attributed to the Stickley & Brandt Chair Company

Seating

£695.00

An unusual and exuberantly styled decorative armchair in stained birch wood.

The high back, flanked by downswept scrolled arms, comprises bobbin turned spindles, between four concave horizontal splats with applied embossed leather in alternating dragon and gillyflower (stock) motifs. The uprights terminate in sinuous swan neck finials. Unusual recently restored concave embossed chestnut leather “cobbler’s seat” with brass stud detailing. Below, two roundels with applied embossed leather peacock feather motifs uniting a moulded frieze and the front stretcher.

The chair’s unusual style suggests its origins may lie in the American realisation of the Aesthetic Movement. We have seen a small number of these, both as armchairs and rockers. At least one example was attributed to the Stickley & Brandt Chair Company of Binghampton, New York. Established (with his brother-in-law Schuyler Coe Brandt) in 1891 by Charles Stickley – a younger brother of Gustav Stickley, a central figure in the American Arts and Crafts Movement – the company was known for its elaborately carved chairs (some featuring similar bobbin turned spindles), until 1909 when it adopted Gustav’s popular and plainer Craftsman style.

We have also seen another of these chairs bearing the label of Turner, Son & Walker, cabinet manufacturers of 59 Bold Street, Liverpool, appearing in Kelly’s Directory of Liverpool & Birkenhead 1894, page 747. Consistent in date, this might confirm the identity of the British importers.

Whatever its exact origins, this chair is a bold statement piece with great colour and lovely patina.

American, 1890s.

Dimensions:

Height of back: approximately 132 cm (52 inches)

Height of seat: 47 cm (18.5 inches)

Width: 63 cm (24.75 inches)

Depth: 58 cm (22.75 inches)

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