Side chair

Experimentation in forms, materials, and techniques was a dominant theme in nineteenth-century American woodworking, as craftsmen and manufacturers sought to improve upon tradition. This side chair, which gives with the weight of a sitter but always returns to its original shape when unoccupied, is an early manifestation of this interest.The chair's maker, Samuel Gragg, received a patent for an "elastic chair" on August 31, 1808. Gragg adapted the ancient practice of bending wood with moisture and heat to create his sinuous chairs in keeping with classical Greek forms, as interpreted through the latest English pattern books by Thomas Hope, George Smith, and others. Daringly, Gragg achieved the chair's striking compound-curve design by steaming a single piece of wood to serve as the rear upper post, or stile, seat rail, and front leg on each side. The back supports are similarly bold, as are the strongly raking rear legs, curved stretchers between the legs, and other elements that complete the elegant lines.The decoration of the chair, probably executed by a specialist, is as fashionable as the construction is innovative. Painted a tawny color overall, the chair is accented with striping in shades of brown. The stiles have pendant green leaves at their apex, while the wider central back support is embellished with a skillfully painted, wispy peacock feather. In form and decoration, this chair represents an early manifestation of the "Fancy" style, popularized from 1790 to 1840 and characterized by attention-grabbing shapes and ornament inspired by the imagination.This text was adapted from Ward, et al., MFA Highlights: American Decorative Arts & Sculpture (Boston, 2006) available at www.mfashop.com/mfa-publications.html.