Colonial, Pilgrim, and Early American all refer to the first distinct period of American furniture. As one would expect, Jacobean influences from England are incorporated into furniture made in the early days of American settlement.

Design Elements

• Ornamental carving
• Inlays including mother of pearl
• Chunky finials and legs
• Raised panels
• Wood turnings
• Woods tended to be native – fruit, oak, maple, pine, cherry, birch
• Joints were pegged or mortis and tenon

Examples

Here are a few examples of Colonial/Pilgrim/Early American furniture.   Click on any image to zoom in.

 View Member Made Colonial/Pilgrim/Early American pieces from our Gallery >

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Bibliography

Furniture of the Pilgrim Century – Wallace Nutting – https://books.google.com/books?id=K3MvAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA182#v=onepage&q&f=false

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turned_chair

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewster_Chair

Studio Furniture is defined as one-of-a-kind or limited production of furniture objects designed and built by craftspeople. Its beginnings can be traced to the Arts and Crafts Period at the beginning of the industrialization of furniture making. The design process is as important as the execution of the piece.

Notable Makers include Peter Maynard, who builds furniture in the Arts and Crafts revival style; Chris Bowman is an art furniture maker with a bent toward the whimsical; James Probst builds custom furniture in West Virginia, and many others.

Design Element

• Ergonomic considerations
• Creative expression
• Incorporation of the subtleties and variations of the materials used

Examples

Here are a few examples of Post Modern/Studio furniture.   Click on any image to zoom in.

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 Bibliography

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_furniture
• https://fullercraft.org/made-in-massachusetts-studio-furniture-of-the-bay-state/
• https://www.finewoodworking.com/2006/04/10/a-society-dedicated-to-furniture

Manufacturing allowed for single unit furniture – such as a table with top, pedestal, and base all formed as a unit.

Notable makers include Charles and Ray Eames, Milo Baughman, Robert Broward, and Max Gottschalk.

Design Element

• Incorporates plastic, aluminum, and molded laminated products
• Simple and clean lines
• Honest use of materials,
• Generally devoid of decorative elements
• Scandinavian design elements of simplicity, democratic design (seen as unpretentious and affordable), and natural shapes were commonly incorporated

Examples

Here are a few examples of Mid-Century Modern furniture.   Click on any image to zoom in.

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 Bibliography

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mid-century_modern

Art Deco with crisp lines and controlled curves was more accepted than Art Nouveau.

Key furniture designers of the style are Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Paul Follot who refused to use mass production insisting each piece be completely hand made. Other designers were Louis Sue and Andre Mare.

Cubism influenced the design style.

Design Element

• Makers used expensive materials such as veneers, lacquered woods, ebony, ivory, and later glass and steel
• Legs were straight or slightly tapered
• Chair backs extremely low or extremely high
• Fabrics were often highly stylized floral motifs in silk

Examples

Here are a few examples of Art Deco furniture.   Click on any image to zoom in.

 View Member Made Art Deco pieces from our Gallery >

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 Bibliography

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Deco