Irish Country Furniture, 1700-1950 [Hardcover]

Claudia Kinmonth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1993

Interest in vernacular furniture has grown tremendously during the past decade. This book is comprehensively illustrated with photographs, line drawings and paintings, the vast majority of which have never before been published. It not only explains the origins, distribution and survival of many ancient designs, but also provides a broader picture of cultural links through their transmission abroad, relating Irish furniture to designs in Europe, the United States and Australia. Kinmonth explains how traditional housing, shortage of timber and a surprising variety of woodworkers combined to influence the design of furniture in Ireland, showing in separate typological chapters how chairs, dressers, tables, beds and settles evolved and varied regionally according to local needs. As a result, this book also serves as a cultural history of Ireland: it will broaden people's understanding of how the Irish lived in their cottages and farms, and demonstrates the ingenuity of Irish rural craftspeople in the face of great poverty through the ages.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This splendid book explores a wholly different furniture landscape, that of the rural population... [It] bristles with sharp insights into the social history of furniture." Christopher Gilbert, Country Life "This is a welcome addition to the small collection of works on Irish material folk culture. It is beautifully illustrated and will be of interest not just to folklorists but also to anyone who has an interest in history or antiques." Timothy P. O'Neill, Irish Arts Review [Kinmonth's] is a sympathetic and deeply committed account of a fast-disappearing victim of contemporary Irish culture to which she does full and fitting justice." Nicola Gordon Bowe, Journal of Design History "Kinmonth's champion study of Irish vernacular furniture is strong on social history and literary allusion, over and above its engagement with craftsmanship and aesthetics... A pioneering book,... full of riveting details." Patricia Craig, Times Literary Supplement "Not only an informative history and gazetteer of a subject we all know about and may not adequately appreciate, but thanks to the energy of the author, it does convey a very vivid sense of how life was lived in rural Ireland." Milo Drummond, Irish Sunday Independent" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Claudia Kinmonth is an independent cultural historian and former researcher in the Furniture Department of the Victoria & Albert Museum. She is the author of the forthcoming Irish Rural Interiors in Art, published by Yale University Press. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 249 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (November 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300055749
• ISBN-13: 978-0300055740
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,152,132 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the definitive reference book of Irish Furniture., October 21, 1999

By 

Anthea Conlon (Bethesda, Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Irish Country Furniture, 1700-1950 (Paperback)

I found this book to be a wonderful resource detailing Irish Furniture and it's place in the cultural history of Ireland. There are numerous photographs which are very helpful in realizing the variety of styles within a given category of furniture.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Academic but useful- Irish Country life as well, April 29, 2008

By 

J. A. Cuming "Anthony Cuming" (Roscommon, Eire) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Irish Country Furniture, 1700-1950 (Paperback)

This fat book not only is encyclopedic in its range, but covers the settings that beds,chairs, dressers were created for and were used in.

Sadly it reflects a vanishing world, where hand crafted domestic furniture was to be found in most country homes. The march of the 'South Fork' home and Hacienda style bungalow has meant much of what is recorded here is vanishing fast.