Although Ray may have been singing about the Peach State, I would like to discuss the madness of King Georgian furniture.  In antique speak, “Georgian” is a catchall term referring to English (and sometimes American) pieces made during the three successive reigns of George I (1714 - 1727), George II (1727 - 1760), and crazy George III (1760 - 1820).  That is a 106 year period spanning from the Baroque to the Neoclassical. Early Georgian often refers to the Rococo and the reigns of George I and George II.  Although still heavily influenced by French style, Early Georgian interiors and furnishings reveal the growing sophistication of the English aristocracy who showed their good taste and social status with their beautifully furnished residences.  Early Georgian distills the essence of Englishness, tempering aristocratic pomp with the restraint that separates most British styles from the French.  The ball-and-claw foot, derived from an ancient Chinese image of a dragon holding a pearl, is a hallmark of Early Georgian furniture.  Representing the high point of English design, Late Georgian or George III style interiors fully embrace the symmetry and refinement of Neoclassicism.  Without assuming extravagant proportions and showing restraint against the French desire for ornamentation, legendary designers like Adam, Chippendale, Hepplewhite and Sheraton created a pervasive and enduring style that can hold its own with the very best of French Neoclassicism.  The claw-and-ball and cabriole leg is dropped in favor of strikingly slimmer, more tapered leg.  Although the term Georgian can be maddening because it represents over a hundred years of design, at least the terms Early Georgian (= Rococo) and Late Georgian (= Neoclassicism) can assist us in narrowing down this important period.

This Early Georgian side chair is a fine example of the English Rococo in the 1730s.  Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The shield-back side chair, illustrated in Late Georgian English pattern books by George Hepplewhite and Thomas Sheraton, became one of the most popular American chair forms by the end of the eighteenth century.  Brooklyn Museum.

I wonder if Sarah Palin knows that American Chippendale differs from English Chippendale out of political-economic protest by the Thirteen Colonies to the taxation measures of Crown?  In the 1760s, various colonies passed non-importation resolutions vowing not to import English goods – including London-made Chippendale furniture.  By 1765, the flow of the fashionable Chippendale furniture from England to America had practically dried up.  But copies of Chippendale’s book of designs had already made it to America & up until the Revolution there was a steady migration of journeymen cabinetmakers from London.  However, as our cabinetmakers began to work in the Chippendale manner, fundamental differences between American & English Chippendale began to manifest.  While Chippendale’s designs were a pared down, Anglicized version of the French Rococo under Louis XV, American Chippendale retained the strong structural lines of London’s Queen Anne & early Georgian furniture.  American Chippendale was less influenced by the more feminine aspects of the Rococo & is characterized by more masculine vigor.

Two animated chipmunks & erotic male dancing aside, Chippendale refers to an 18^th century English style of furniture that is often most easily identified by its use of the ball & claw foot.  Unlike Rococo or Biedermeier, the term Chippendale honors a flesh & blood journeyman cabinet maker named Thomas Chippendale (1718 – 79).  In 1754, he became the first cabinet maker to publish a book of his designs, titled The Gentleman & Cabinet-maker’s Director.  His book of designs established the fashion for furniture for that period & was copied by furniture makers all over the globe (especially in the soon-to-be United States).   Even though very little furniture in existence can be directly attributed to having been made by Chippendale, he is well remembered for being one of the best designers of his era.

Chippendale’s chair designs from The Gentleman & Cabinet-maker’s Director.  Note the tapered back, pierced fretwork, & ball & claw feet!