A look at Modern Woodwork

Although no formal blog post was required this week, our introduction to the intricate woodwork the English were performing as early as the 16^th century had me motivated to research a bit of modern wood manipulation. 

I was quite fascinated in how the Tudor furniture we saw often employed the use of lathe work in order to achieve some of the stunningly symmetrical wooden furniture presented during lecture. 

This certainly added to my understanding of the craftsmanship heritage the English share, and to see how far back the use of machining dates within English history was striking. 

I wanted to gain a bit of insight on how some of this furniture is made, and soon realized that YouTube is once again a powerful resource in gaining a bit of introductory knowledge. One channel that particularly stood out to me was that of Frank Howarth. He films beautifully detailed videos that explain his craft in great detail, while he creates furniture and other useful items using numerous types of wood, employing various joining techniques, all at the aid of his detailed sketch work. This is brought together with great knowledge of machine work, in order to create some truly unique pieces of art.

His posts are certainly best enjoyed in YouTube's HD formats, and I would encourage to watch them directly on the website.

These first three videos involve the building of a desk for his son, from initial sketching all the way to finished product.

  

These next two videos involve turning a large piece of Walnut wood into two impressive segmented bowls.

Although these videos do not pertain to the Tudor style in particular, they help to illustrate how foundational the use of lathe work is and has been in the manipulation of wood for hundreds of years.

Blog #7 - The Dutch and Tudor English

The Dutch lifestyle of the 17^th century was marked by an environment shaped at the hands of a merchant society, living along the coastal flatlands of Holland. The Dutch were Protestant Bourgeoisie people, largely unconfined by the social hierarchies that were otherwise so prevalent throughout Europe at the time. This formed a predominantly middle class culture that valued the preservation of informal family living, rather than aristocracy.

The Low lands of Holland provided the Dutch with an often challenging landscape to populate, and required careful manipulation to evacuate the vast amounts of coastal waters hindering safe construction. This led to an early understanding and pioneering in the damming of sea water, along with a continuously reshaping network of dykes to stem these masses. When it came to building their homes, the Dutch understandably favored lighter materials such as brick, in order to minimize sinking that may plague heavier stone structures.

The communal lifestyle of the Dutch also saw the use of “Party Walls,” in order to separate houses or apartments with a single wall and regularly led to tight living quarters. Because the Dutch were so involved within the sea faring import/export community, their homes commonly resembled the rough dimensions of a ship’s hull, leading to long quadrangular structures. When combined with the fact that these buildings typically had multiple floors to accommodate sleeping arrangements, it was often difficult to move large furniture. A sturdy iron hook would consequently be cantilevered from the top floor of a building in order to hoist heavy or bulky  objects from the street to the floors above. The resulting narrow rooms generally convey a sense of comfort, and lead to a space that “hugs” the individuals within them.

The furniture and decoration of these homes was an addition to these shared values of comfort and family living, and was designed to fit well within these unique dimensions. We also find an early adoption of childproofing, through the use of elevated cupboards and baskets for cleaning supplies or other things one may have deemed hazardous in the hands of little ones at the time. Although a combination of decorative and functional aspects was often appreciated, one finds very little in terms of variety within the furniture of the time. We see the use of the Palisandre chair throughout the home, and rugs or other textiles are frequently employed to provide insulation from the cold weather. Black and white tiling patterns are also used within the home, along with whitewashed walls throughout.

The exploratory nature of the Dutch was also underlined by the display of large travelling maps, crediting the owner with merchant success and knowledge of the oceans. Great understanding of natural science was not just evident within the complex water stemming abilities of the Dutch, but was further revealed in their complex horticultural understanding. Thus plants rich with a perfume like scent were regularly grown indoors to provide for decoration, and more importantly mask the smell of excrement and bodily odor. Although the Dutch had good habits of keeping clean layered clothing on, bathing was rather infrequent, as producing a hot tub of water was still difficult, and the cold weather conditions made it far more favorable to simply wash ones face, hands and feet.

The experience in England can be described rather differently, as the Tudor and Elizabethan styles evolved during an era massively influenced by aristocracy and the quest for nobility. The strong sense of independence from the rest of Europe resulted in the general rejection and distancing from the stylistic influences of France and Italy, who were rapidly benefiting from the advancements brought about by the Renaissance. Thus while the English royalty of the 15^th and 16^th century had the means to continue displaying their wealth, the people of England were largely faced with scarcity when building their homes.

Consequently we see 16^th century English interiors appearing largely archaic when contrasted with other European hot-spots of the time, overwhelmingly relying on simple plank furniture to fill the poorly illuminated spaces of their homes. This lack of light was a result of rudimentary glass applications, as larger sheet glass was not being rolled domestically and was essentially unseen in England at the time.

Carpenters of this time were also working with rather elementary principles at the time, commonly splitting large cross sections of oak wood along its medullary rays in order to cut component planks that were uneven as a result. This was just one production inefficiency, that in combination with the massive ship building endeavors’ practiced by the navy, and the great amounts of charcoal being consumed in the production of industrial iron presented the small island of England with the rapid depletion of its timber.

Thus we really do not see much distancing from the basic furniture found within the great hall of previous generations. One finds stools with three legs to accommodate uneven grounds, and overall dark tones remain within their decoration. For the wealthier people of England however, these issues were becoming less relevant, and the use of heraldic devices was much more central in their quest for nobility.

This is where a figure like Henry VII becomes interesting to consider. Following the Battle of Bosworth on August 22 of 1485, Henry VII killed Richard III in the war of the roses. Richard III was the king of the house of York, and in his defeat Henry VII claimed succession to the throne in the name of the house of Tudor. Although acting by the right of conquest, Henry VII was not next in line to be king, and therefore needed to solidify his reign in any way possible. He began fostering relations with France and other European entities in order to discredit any negative claims against him originating from the house of York. In order to gain the greatest influence over the allies Henry VII was trying to win however, he needed to present himself with as much credibility and royal heritage as possible. Thus he began employing a host of heraldic devices, frequently using of the Tudor Rose and Shield to decorate furniture and create various coats of arms.

Henry VII used these devices to shape his royalty in a way that portrayed his reign as powerful and justified, and began his expansion of the House of Tudor by marrying powerful women such as Elizabeth of the House of York. The combination of expanding his royal influence while promoting the House of Tudor through the use of heraldic devices led Henry VII to overcome his establishment struggles effectively, and solidified the importance of these techniques in preserving the English monarchy for centuries to come.

When analyzing both the Dutch and Tudor interior around the 15^th and 16^th century it becomes once again evident how little geographic vicinity plays in the shaping of a region. Although separated just a short distance from one another, these people shared common merchant endeavors and motivations, yet the resulting societies emerged vastly different.

Blog #6 - French Baroque and Rococo

The beginning of the 17^th century was marked by great strides in the collective knowledge found in many western societies of the time. It was the age of enlightenment, a period when forward thinking individuals like Isaac Newton and Johannes Kepler had begun to replace religious idealism with scientific reason. This intellectual development was observable in many forms, consequently reshaping the approach of common art and design. 

The Baroque is a period that in many ways embodied these changes, with architectural works such as the often mentioned Palace of Versailles offering an ideal example. This structure features the era’s strict attention to norm and regulation that was present in virtually all forms of art and design of the time. Thus the many gardens and walkways that span across this vast property feature very clear symmetry along with a clear linear layout enriched through careful landscaping and intricate garden features. The interior features include the use of many salons, each dedicated to a different planet of our solar system, again highlighting this period’s emphasis on scientific knowledge. These salons also give showcase to the typical artwork one associates with the Baroque, rich in motion, and filled with clear human imagery and emotion. One also sees strong distinctions in color, a technique employed to separate each of the salons and providing them with a unique character. Mirrored glass is often another element of noble baroque interiors, and Versailles offers an entire room dedicated to this, the Galerie des Glaces. The mirrors in this room are the product of the complex French guild system, responsible for the oversight of virtually all skilled crafts of the time, in order to maintain the aforementioned strict standards of the time.

 
The Rococo very much evolved out of the Baroque style of the early 18^th century, and begins to resent this rather stiff approach. The strong emphasis on norming every aspect of design began to give way to an era of comfort and informality. The elite begin to construct their residences to join great gardens onto striking interiors, and we see Rococo architecture make use of increasingly larger window-doors to accommodate for this. Interior spaces were created and developed not just by architects, but also by craftsmen and designers in order to create completely unique dwellings. While this led to the construction of stunning spaces, it did not yield overly crammed or busy environments. The rococo style instead employed a lightness of scale, and often asymmetric design to produce what may have been called minimalistic during the Baroque period, one great example of this is the use of white ceilings beginning to gain popularity during the Rococo.

Both of these periods resulted in a great expansion of furniture design and production methods, and we again see a trend of furniture being shaped by the surrounding architecture. We thus observe highly stylized tables, cabinets, commodes and pedestals originating from Baroque times. These featured Boulle Marquetry inlay and Bureau Plat, and made use of metals such as brass.

The furniture of the Rococo reflected an emphasis on comfort, and we see decorative padding being employed on nearly any seating surface of the time. This included the Bidet for Louis the XV, which featured a cushioned seat and backrest. The use of comfort rooms and spaces dedicated to communal often scholarly activity meant comfortable seating took many shapes, with arm chairs like the Voyeuse offering padding both to the one seated and the person leaning on its backrest. Similarly the Fauteuil can attribute its shape in part to providing comfortable seating to a women wearing a pannier skirt, and needing extra room to accommodate for its accentuated size.