American Furniture 2021

The 2021 edition of American Furniture centers on objects themselves—from Rhode Island discoveries to celebrated pieces linked to Jefferson's Declaration of Independence. Essays explore labor and memory in furniture history, redemption through reimagination, and the troubling narratives behind fraudulent pieces. A scholarly volume for collectors and historians seeking depth beyond the surface.

256 Pages, 8.8 x 11.3 in, 210 illustrations.

Contents:

Cradling the Past: Labor and Memory in Furniture History
Kenneth Cohen

An “Ingenious” Man: George Peabody, Newport Cabinetmaker
Patricia E. Kane

Newly Discoveries in Furniture by Christopher Townsend
Erik Gronning and Amy Coes

Thomas Jefferson’s Writing Box and Rotating Windsor Writing Chair
James Gergat

Reimagining and Redemption: The Chipstone Foundation’s Secretary with Chipmunk
Beth Lipman and Jonathan Prown

“Forging the Real War”: Nostalgia, Memory, and Trauma in the Bingham Memorial Secretary
Brandy Culp and Ruthie Dibble

Book Reviews

James Krenov: Leave Fingerprints
Review by Julie Muñiz 

A Rare Treatise on Interior Decoration and Architecture: Joseph Friedrich zu Racknitz’s “Presentation and History of the Taste of the Leading Nations
Review by Ethan Lasser 

Modern Gothic: The Inventive Furniture of Kimbel and Cabus, 1863–82
Review by Gerald W. R. Ward 

_______________________________________________________

Born from a passion for American decorative arts, the Chipstone Foundation established this interdisciplinary journal to advance scholarship on furniture made and used across the Americas from the seventeenth century to the present.

Drawing on decades of collecting expertise and a commitment to preservation and education, American Furniture brings together rigorous research and curatorial insight for collectors, scholars, and enthusiasts alike.