AUCTION FINDS OF THE WEEK- MAY 13TH: A SOFA TALE
by Kelly Keating on 05/12/13
The auction finds for this week are all sofas of different styles and periods. The sofa is of course the centerpiece of one's drawing room and can set the tone for the entire space. Its style and fabric can be a difficult choice; it is the chief piece of furniture in the room.
I do not have a regular sofa, but a Victorian fainting couch. It has fairly simple lines and its simplicity is enhanced by being upholstered in a black damask fabric with large tone-on-tone fleur de lis, but I am disruptive like that. It sets the mood for my drawing room, but does not look "too Victorian" or "too fussy" or "too Grandma-ish" And that is what really prompted this week's finds. How do 19th century couchs compete against the prevailing fade for mid-century and other modern design? Can they compete? Are they still desirable objects in this current market?
This week's first 4 discoveries are all being auctioned off on May 25th at Northeast Auctions in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The first find, lot 91, is a New York carved mahogany sofa circa 1825-1850 in the Empire style. The back of the couch has an arched and serpentine crest rail joining horn of plenty arms upholstered with bulster pillows above a gadrooned front rail and ending in magnificient winged hairy paw feet. This is a gorgeous piece of furniture with great carving and who could resist those large hairy paw feet! But it looks like a museum piece rather than something someone would buy to be the centerpiece of their living room. In part it is its historical red formal fabric that also "dates" this item. Perhaps with a more modern textile this sofa could achieve a new life and a new home. The pre-sale estimate for the Empire sofa is only $1,000-2,000.
The second sofa discovery this week is lot 108, another Empire carved mahogany sofa with scrolled back and arms with carved acanthus, scroll and cornucopia carving, raised on similarly carved legs and ending in massive paw feet. This couch suffers in much the same way as the above sofa. But just in its neutral upholstery, it feels less "dated" then the first Empire piece. A dynamic modern fabric in a neutral shade could be quite fabulous on this couch. The pre-sale estimate for this piece is $800-1,400.
The final 2 sofas at Northeast Auctions on May 25th are in the sleeker, simpler Sheraton style. "Sheraton is a late 18th century neoclassical English (and American) furniture style, in vogue ca 1785 - 1820, that was coined by 19th century collectors and dealers to credit furniture designer Thomas Sheraton, born in Stockton-on-Tees, England in 1751 and whose books, "The Cabinet Dictionary" (1803) of engraved designs and the "Cabinet Maker's & Upholsterer's Drawing Book" (1791) of furniture patterns exemplify this style. The Sheraton style was inspired by the Louis XVI style and features round tapered legs, fluting and most notably contrasting veneer inlays. Sheraton style furniture takes lightweight rectilinear forms, using satinwood, mahogany and tulipwood, sycamore and rosewood for inlaid decorations, though painted finishes and brass fittings are also to be found. Swags, husks, flutings, festoons, and rams' heads are amongst the common motifs applied to pieces of this style." The first sofa, lot 137, is a Massachusetts Sheraton carved mahogany sofa with scrolled arms and reeded legs. The pre-sale estimate for this couch is $500-800. The simpler Sheration style could lend itself to a more modern setting as long as the fabric had a modern flair in terms of design and color.
The second sofa, lot 129, is a New York Sheraton mahogany carved sofa with a rolled back and shaped arms, shaped handgrips continuing to reeded vasiform supports continuting to turned, tapered and reeded frontal legs. The Sheraton style has a subtle and simple elegance that I think could still appeal in today's market. Again the piece needs the right fabric and lots of cushy pillows in the same fabric to soften its 19th century look. The pre-sale estimate for this item is $1,500-2,500.
And now 4 modern design sofas that probably have greater appeal in the current market. The first find is an update of an old form- the tete-a-tete- an Edward Wormley tete-a-tete sofa with brass sabots and walnut legs made for Dunbar Furniture circa 1980. It is being auctioned on May 25th at Palm Beach Modern Auctions, lot 1, with a pre-sale estimate of $7,000-10,000. Wormley "(1907–1995) was an American designer of modernist furniture. In 1926 he went to study briefly at the Art Institute of Chicago. Funds ran out and he went to work as an interior designer for Marshall Fields & Company department store. During the Depression, Wormley was introduced to the president of Dunbar Furniture Company of Berne, Indiana, who hired him to upgrade their product line. Dunbar made a good choice, as Wormley's work met with immediate success. In 1944 the company decided to focus strictly on Modern lines, and Edward Wormley rose to the task, incorporating European and Scandinavian innovations. His eye for quality and the exacting craftsmanship at Dunbar made for furniture that was elegant, understated and exceptionally well-made. Wormley was never really at the forefront of Modern design. Instead, he took the best elements from classical, historical design and translated them into Modern vernacular. The result was furniture that was sophisticated, yet mainstream and very successful." The tete-a-tete is certainly sophisticated and very chic. And look at that estimate compared to the estimates for the 19th century sofas above.
The next sofa discovery is another Wormley piece also made for Dunbar Furniture- a gondola sofa with creme upholstery in a diamond pattern and metal stretchers through the wooden legs. This couch like the tete-a-tete above exudes the same chic sophistication. The gondola couch, lot 176, is being auctioned on May 18th at Ivey-Selkirk in St Louis with a pre-sale estimate of $3,000-5,000.
The third find is a Swedish Grace Period sofa circa 1925 made of tiger maple, ash and brass. This piece is extremely elegant and distilled down to its simplest elements, but made with rich materials. It has a real Neo-classical feel in its tapered legs, curved ends and the subtle contrast of color in the woods used while simultaneously owing something to Art Deco. This graceful couch, lot 184, is being auctioned on May 16th at Wright in Chicago with a pre-sale estimate of $9,000-12,000.
The final sofa discovery this week is a Carl Malmsten sofa made in Sweden circa 1950 with a curved serpentine back and tufted back cushion. The piece is very elegant, but also playful and exuberant. It reminds me of the Hollywood Regency style. This couch is being auctioned on May 16th, lot 282, at Wright in Chicago with a pre-sale estimate of $3,000-5,000. Malmsten (1888–1972) "was a Swedish furniture designer, architect, and educator who was known for his devotion to traditional Swedish craftmanship (slöjd) and his opposition to functionalism. He 'considered the rationalization of the home according to functionalist principles a debasement of its traditional role as an intimate place for gathering and repose'" One can clearly see how this sofa suggests intimacy, repose and gathering against more austere forms of modernist design.
So, which sofa would you like to have in your living room? The four modern pieces have much higher estimates than the four 19th century American sofas which is a clear indication of today's markets and its desires. For myself, I could definitely live with the Swedish Grace Period sofa and the Sheraton couches as long as the fabric was sleek, minimal and modern. I hope this week gave you some design ideas for your own home or showed you something new.
Until next week...
Kelly T Keating
www.theantiqueflaneur.com
