Antique Victorian Furniture
Furniture of the Future: Victorian New York's Most Visionary Designer Loved His Machines
By Hunter Oatman-Stanford — When George Jakob Hunzinger patented his first piece of furniture in December of 1860, the United States was on the brink of a devastating Civil War. Amid the growing pressures of industrialization, the country was split between those in favor of an old-fashioned business model—dependent on slavery—and those betting on a more diversified, innovative economy. At the time, the American way of life as we know it today was hardly recognizable: Gas-powered automobiles hadn’t made their debut;...
Victorian Furniture
By Richmond Huntley — "Why do writers on antique furniture leave off right where my interest begins," protests a man who has acquired an attractively situated house of good lines, built about the middle of the 19th Century and wants to furnish it according to the period. Until recently, furniture made after 1830 was not considered antique. Further, the earliest American book on the subject, that of Dr. Lyons, was written during the latter part of the Victorian period when the general taste in furniture and...
American Cast-Iron Furniture
By Carl W. Drepperd — In the broadside political caricatures which were produced and circulated quite freely in America from the beginning of the Jackson era down to the administration of Andrew Johnson, we find reflected much factual and psychological data of use and interest to antiques collectors. American caricaturists were both opportunists and extremists. They aped both the style and philosophy of Gilray and dipped into Greek and Roman classics and Shakespeare for their inspiration and theme. Often they...
Eames, Nelson, and the Mid-Century Modern Aesthetic
By Maribeth Keane — In this interview, Steve Cabella talks about collecting the work of designers Charles and Ray Eames, and about the mid century modern movement. As a teenager, I collected everything from vintage bicycles to Coca-Cola to Victorian stuff. Once I realized some of this stuff contained concepts of art and design, I started looking for vintage objects that also represented art or design movements that could hold my interest. I ran across Art Nouveau and then Art Deco and then Arts and...
The International Influences of Buffalo Furniture
By Maribeth Keane — About 11 years ago, my wife and I went on some architectural tours. We joined the organization that sponsored the tours, and I volunteered to be the Webmaster for them. I decided to take a few photographs to illustrate the tours, and realized it would also be good to describe some of the architecture, so I started an architectural dictionary. Then I decided it would be useful to have some Buffalo history, as background for the architecture, so I started working on that. Then I started...
John Werry Explains How To Appreciate Victorian Furniture
By Maribeth Keane — How did I get started collecting Victorian Furniture? Antiques are in my genes. My mother's family were longtime antiquers and lived in a house built in the 18th Century. But it really hit me about five years ago. We'd go furniture shopping and come out of the store not liking anything, empty handed. We didn't like the quality or the design of today's furniture, and we were getting tired of our cookie-cutter house. So we decided to go out into the country to find a historic property that had...