8th Dec, 2022 11:00
Modern Art & Design
873
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Gerald Summers (11899-1967) for Makers of Simple Furniture
Armchair, 1934
cut and bent sheet of birch-laminated plywood
with applied brass label with registration no. 791116
75cm high, 60.5cm wide, 84cm deep.
In 1929 Summers and his wife Majorie Amy Butcher started Makers of Simple Furniture and began to experiment with free-form designs and malleable materials. Summers specialised in airplane plywood, which resulted in some of the most innovative designs of the period. His seminal work of 1933-4, an example of which is offered here, took advantage of the wood's flexibility. Summers manipulated one piece of wood into a seamless seat, considered a Modernist masterpiece. With its smooth surface and absence of metal, it was originally designed for use in the tropics to withstand high humidity however the chair was only replicated 120 times because the production cost was too high.
Sold for £10,000
Estimated at £8,000 - £12,000
Gerald Summers (11899-1967) for Makers of Simple Furniture
Armchair, 1934
cut and bent sheet of birch-laminated plywood
with applied brass label with registration no. 791116
75cm high, 60.5cm wide, 84cm deep.
In 1929 Summers and his wife Majorie Amy Butcher started Makers of Simple Furniture and began to experiment with free-form designs and malleable materials. Summers specialised in airplane plywood, which resulted in some of the most innovative designs of the period. His seminal work of 1933-4, an example of which is offered here, took advantage of the wood's flexibility. Summers manipulated one piece of wood into a seamless seat, considered a Modernist masterpiece. With its smooth surface and absence of metal, it was originally designed for use in the tropics to withstand high humidity however the chair was only replicated 120 times because the production cost was too high.
The chair is structurally sound and can be sat in. There are no major damage or problems. There is veneer loss - principally to the underside back of legs, but there are other smaller veneer losses that have been added to the photographs. Surface wear as photographed.
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Auction: Modern Art & Design, 8th Dec, 2022
