1 August 1987
Interior Design
One of the assignments I enjoy most is designing a really traditional
room. I love shopping for fine antique tables and selecting comfortable
upholstered furniture to complement them. And to keep the design from
getting too serious or stuffy, I like to add a dash of whimsy. A piece
of English bamboo and chinoiserie, like the one in the photograph, hits
just the right note. It is authentic, practical, light in feeling and
has a degage charm.
Bamboo furniture has been around a long time. The Chinese made it as
early as the Sung Dynasty (960-1279). The furniture they made for export
to the European market was elaborately constructed of tightly latticed
narrow bamboo with trimmings of ivory, bone or metal. The bamboo used in
domestic furniture was coarser, and the designs were simple and unadorned.
The popularity of bamboo waxed and wanted in Europe. In 1770 Thomas
Chippendale designed a set of chairs in simulated bamboo. The French
created faux bamboo, which has been widely used for two centuries.
America, too, developed a distinctive version of real as well as
simulated bamboo.
The greatest impetus to the vogue for bamboo, however, was the
construction of the Royal Pavilion in Brighton, England. The Prince of
Wales commissioned architect Henry Holland to build him a country
farmhouse in 1802. By the time he became King George IV in 1822, the
original house had been transformed into a resplendent palace. The great
architect John Nash contributed to the design of the main house and
students of Capability Brown conceived the gardens. The interior was
done by John Crace, whose son Frederick, assisted by Robert Jones,
created a new form of chinoiserie in the Regency style with brilliant
colors, exuberant decoration and rich fantasy. Bamboo, real and
simulated, cane, latticework, mirror, marble, painted and faux finishes
all combined to create a magnificent, unusual and quirky masterpiece of
design.
Regency bamboo was much admired. The famous Brighton chair was widely
used, and is still being copied. Bamboo cabinets with lacquer panels,
armoires with woven grass matting, washstands with decorated tiles and
desks with embossed leather paper were all prominent in the decor of the
period. Victorian designers continued the trend. Between 1869 and 1935
there were over 150 registered dealers in English bamboo.
In the latter half of the 19th century, William Morris and his followers
in the Arts and Crafts movement brought a new sensibility to the design
of bamboo. In place of the fanciful they opted for the practical. Whimsy
was replaced by utility. Curves were straightened, curlicues eliminated,
function became form.
There are many places in New York to find old bamboo. Hamilton-Hyre, on
Bleecker Street, has a selection of French faux bamboo and usually a few
pieces of Victorian English bamboo and chinoiserie. Garvin Mecking, on
11th Street, always has some interesting and unusual bamboo. Kentshire
Galleries, on 12th Street, has small bamboo accessories in their new
Collector's Gallery on the third floor and larger pieces on another
floor. The Newel Art Galleries on East 53rd Street maintains an ample
stock of French and English bamboo. Nancy Brous, who has an expanding
antiques showroom in the D&D building, is importing choice pieces of
English Regency and Victorian bamboo.
My first stop on the hunt for bamboo, however, is the Antique Cache.
Located on the second level of the Manhattan Art and Antiques Center on
Second Avenue, this is a treasure trove. Tillie Steinberg imports
costumers, chests, desks like the one illustrated here, mirrors,
bookcases, magazine stands and armoires, all in mint condition and
reasonably priced. She is also accommodating about tracking down a
particular piece. Recently I was looking for a small bamboo and
chinoiserie desk, and she found one on her next trip to London.
The illustrated bamboo bookcase desk with black and red
chinoiserie laquered panels would be perfect in an English library.
COPYRIGHT 1987 Reed Business Information. This material is published
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