Plan for Library Table with Moldings, from Chippendale Drawings, Vol. II
Medium
Black ink, gray wash
Dimensions
sheet: 8 11/16 x 13 1/2 in. (22.1 x 34.2 cm)
Classification
Drawings|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1920
Accession Number
20.40.2(18)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Thomas Chippendale, one of 18th-century England's most celebrated cabinetmakers, created this precise drawing in 1753 as part of his seminal *Chippendale Drawings, Vol. II*. Titled *Plan for Library Table withings*, it showcases a design for an elegant library table, reflecting the Georgian era's fascination with refined domestic furnishings. At a time when furniture patterns were becoming widely published to inspire craftsmen across Britain and the American colonies, Chippendale work bridged artisanal tradition and emerging neoclassical tastes, evident in the intricate moldings that add both ...
About the Artist
Thomas Chippendale · 1718–1779
Thomas Chippendale, baptized on June 5, 1718, in Otley, Yorkshire, was born into a family steeped in woodworking traditions, the only child of joiner John Chippendale and Mary Drake. His father likely provided his initial hands-on training in cabinetmaking, supplemented by time in the workshop of York joiner Richard Wood, before Chippendale relocated to London around 1749. He married Catherine Red...