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Cabinet

Wood cabinet with lighter wood floral design and brass.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • Wood cabinet with lighter wood floral design and brass.

Date:

1878–80

Artist:

Herter Brothers (American, 1864–1906)
New York

About this artwork

Herter Brothers, one of New York’s foremost decorating firms during the 1870s and early 1880s, followed the lead of English designers intent on reforming an industry that produced poorly conceived and constructed work by advocating designs that were both beautiful and functional. Brothers Gustave and Christian Herter preferred bold, rectilinear shapes, which they often enlivened, as in this case, with exquisite surface decoration inspired by Japanese art, evidence of the Japanism that was prevalent throughout the West at this time. Here the painted roundels featuring flowers and insects at top left and right of the cabinet emulate Japanese lacquer, while the floral inlay across the facade is reminiscent of patterns found in Japanese screen paintings and textiles. Japanese family crests inspired the bands of inlay across the tops of the doors and above the side compartments, and Japanesque plum blossoms were carved in the arched spandrels on either side of the facade. Nevertheless, the overall form of the cabinet is Western, and the piece also includes such non-Japanesque elements as Egyptian-Revival paw feet. Aesthetic Movement designers such as Herter Brothers readily combined such eclectic motifs as long as they achieved a sense of visual harmony.

Status

On View, Gallery 273

Department

Arts of the Americas

Artist

Herter Brothers

Title

Cabinet

Place

New York City (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

c. 1878–1880

Medium

Rosewood with ebonized cherry, maple, walnut, satinwood, marquetry of various woods, brass, gilding, and paint

Inscriptions

Impressed twice on back boards: "HERTER BRO'S". Incribed on top boards, under velvet, in graphite: "N. 238 Store".

Dimensions

134.6 × 180.3 × 40.6 cm (53 × 71 × 16 in.)

Credit Line

Purchased with funds provided by the Antiquarian Society through the Capital Campaign

Reference Number

1986.26

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https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/105105/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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