Wendell Castle
Coat Rack with Trench Coat

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Artist Wendell Castle (American, 1932–2018)American, 1932–2018

CultureAmerican

Titles

Coat Rack with Trench Coat

Date1978

PlaceUnited States

MediumHonduran mahogany

Dimensions75 × 22 7/8 × 21 1/2 in. (190.5 × 58.1 × 54.6 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by Roy M. Huffington, Inc. and anonymous donors

Object number84.299

Not on view

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Department

Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design

Object Type

WOOD OBJECTS

DescriptionOriginally trained as a sculptor, Wendell Castle emerged as a leading furnituremaker in the 1960s. In his upstate New York studio, he sculpted exquisitely crafted, wholly original organic forms from large blocks of laminated hardwoods. In 1976 he began producing historically inspired furniture, playfully augmented with carved trompe l'oeil objects. Coat Rack with Trench Coat—complete with drapery, buttonholes, a missing button, and a hem—exemplifies Castle's ability to challenge perceptions, transforming wood into supple realism.

Provenance[Alexander F. Milliken, New York]; purchased by MFAH, 1984.
Exhibition History"The Furniture of Wendell Castle," Detroit Institute of Arts, December 5, 1989–February 4, 1990.

"Call and Response," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, September 23, 1994–January 1, 1995.

"The Twentieth Century: Decorative Arts from the Permanent Collection," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, September 30, 1995–February 18, 1996.

"Contemporary Craft in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, May 27–August 13, 2001.

"Eighth Annual International Exposition of Sculpture Objects & Functional Art," The Seventh Regiment Armory, New York, June 2–June 5, 2005.

"Crafting a Collection: Contemporary Craft in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, August 26, 2006–January 6, 2007.

"Optical Illusions: Selections from the Museum's Collection," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, January 16–July 14, 2019.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

signed and dated on vertical shaft: "W. Castle 78"

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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