Lot 13
  • 13

Jon Brooks

Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 USD
bidding is closed

Description

  • Jon Brooks
  • "Styx Ladderback" Chair
  • incised with artist's signature and date
  • carved and painted birch

Provenance

Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner

Literature

Paul J. Smith and Edward Lucie-Smith, Craft Today:  Poetry of the Physical, New York, 1986, fig. 108
"Furniture With Forests In Mind," Interiors, April 1994, p. 80 (for a similar example)
Craig Bloodgood, "Shaker Inspiration," American Craft, February/March, 2001, p. 92 (for a similar example)
Robin Rice, "Jon Brooks," American Craft, Aug./Sept. 2003, p. 73 (for a similar work with the same carved decorative scheme)
Jonathan Holmes, "Convergence: Crossing the Divide," Craft Arts International, Summer 2005, p. 109 (for a similar example)

Condition

Overall in very good original condition. With scratches, nicks and dings as expected with age. With evidence of surface dirt. Chair is stable. The decoration is incised in the wood and then colored.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

Variants of this unique form are in the permanent collections of the Museum of Art and Design in New York and The Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, NH.  Similar examples have traveled throughout the United States and Europe as part of two major museum exhibitions entitled Poetry of The Physical and Craft Today USA.

Jon Brooks lives in New Hampshire surrounded by his art, where he creates bold curvilinear sculptural designs accentuated with a close attention to the carved graffiti-like surface treatment.  Blurring the line between art and design, the early examples of the "Styx" chairs, including the current lot, lack seats, creating a true sculptural form.