John Linnell
Armchair

Public Domain

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Images(2)

ArtistAttributed to John Linnell (English, 1729–1796)English, 1729–1796

CultureEnglish

Titles

Armchair

Datec. 1770

PlaceLondon, England

MediumBeech, gilding, and upholstery (not original)

DimensionsOverall: 39 1/4 × 26 1/2 × 22 1/2 in. (99.7 × 67.3 × 57.2 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by the Arch and Stella Rowan Foundation, Inc.

Object number87.114

Current Location

Rienzi

Drawing Room

On view

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Department

Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design

Object Type

FURNITURE

DescriptionThis 18th-century gilded armchair was likely designed as part of a larger suite of furniture intended for a salon or formal drawing room. Every surface of the generously scaled Neoclassical chair features sophisticated carving, except the back. Because such pieces were made to stand against the wall, and brought forward only when required, designers and their clients felt no need to decorate a section that would seldom be seen. Although this work is unsigned, the chair's proportions, angled seat back, and arms ending in ball motifs are all characteristic of the furniture made in the workshop of John Linnell, one of London’s most accomplished late-18th-century designers. He was among the first English furniture makers to be educated in design, having studied at St. Martin's Lane Academy, founded by painter William Hogarth. Linnell worked closely with the premier architect of the day, Robert Adam, and Linnell's close competitor in the trade, Thomas Chippendale.

Provenance[Hotspur, Ltd., London, 1987]; purchased by MFAH, 1987.

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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