Greene & Greene

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Description

Greene & Greene
Wood Chest from the Laurabelle A. Robinson House, Pasadena, California
mahogany with ebony pegs, copper strapping and pegs, and copper-lined interior
executed in the workshop of Peter Hall, Pasadena, CA

Provenance

Bryce Bannatyne, Santa Monica, CA
A. Laurence Foy, Jr., Peterborough, NH
Cathers & Dembrosky, New York

Catalogue Note

Among the most inventive of early Greene & Greene designs, this wood chest showcases much of the restraint and elegance for which the architects were to become famous. Considerably more developed than other pieces of furniture for this large commission, the chest features a rectilinear structure, through‑tenon joinery and an overall simplicity inspired by the Greenes' admiration for the work of Gustav Stickley. The unity of the design is enhanced by similar treatments of copper pegs and is among their first ever uses of ebony pegs. The inspired introduction of sophisticated cloud lifts, in silhouette, in the upper and lower moldings and in the three-dimensional hand-beveled handles is among the earliest instances of this Japanesque detail on Greene & Greene furniture.