Turning chair
(c. 1870)
Medium
Pine (Pinus sp.), Maple (Acer sp.), Ash (Fraxinus sp.), iron
Measurements
69.1 × 37.3 × 40.7 cm (variable)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased with funds donated by The Gidleigh Foundation, 2024
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
To create a more efficient chair for the workplace, the Shaker chair factory at New Lebanon experimented with a small number of revolving chairs. Called ‘turning chairs’, they were regarded as prototypes and were never marketed for sale; instead, they were mostly used in offices and shops within the Shaker communities. With its pedestal base, arched feet and revolving seat, the Turning chair anticipates the modern office chair. However, the design faced inherent structural issues and the spinning mechanism allowing the seat to adjust was never fully tested or approved for sale. Nevertheless, the resolved design of the chair with its curved back rail, out-turned spindles, bottle-shaped pedestal and tapering and chamfered feet elicits a timeless modernity.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Mount Lebanon, New York, United States
Accession Number
2024.12
Department
International Decorative Arts