Wirework settee with scrolls. The curving top rail of the backrest and arms is formed from a single rod of iron. The back and arms are filled in by vertical rod supports, which curve over the crest rail in an angular scroll. The rolled edges of the seat were meant suggest the comfort of upholstery, though it undoubtedly did not have the same effect as actual cushions. The back and arms have three horizontal support wires, which break up the area into four layers. Across each layer is a series of lambeth scroll motifs that create a decorative pattern. The seat is rectangular with rounded corners and is covered by rows of vertical wires overlaying rows of horizontal wires. The settee is supported on six curved legs with inward-facing scroll feet. Horizontal and diagonal stretchers connect the outer legs to the two legs at the center front and back of the settee. Double triangular brackets with crimped wires radiating from the center connect the seat to the front legs and sides of the back legs. Between the front brackets is an additional stretcher bar with lattice-woven wires connecting to the brackets. The playful scrolls of this design are in the manner of the late-Regency style wrought-iron furnishings of the 1820s and 1830s. Wrought-iron and wire garden seating was popular in the mid-to-late nineteenth century in both Europe and America. Wirework was a new material for garden furnishings, available due to the technical advances in the iron industry, which increased the versatility of the material during the Industrial Revolution. Iron could be worked into fine wires and wrought into the intricate and delicate motifs the Victorians desired. The strength and flexibility of the material opened new design possibilities for wirework furnishings. The frame of these furnishings was made from wrought iron and the supports and surfaces were made from wire strands drawn and interwoven by hand to complete the structure. With the proper interweaving and tensioning of the wires, stability could be achieved. These airy furnishings could also be embellished with curlicues, loops, scrolls, and basket weaves, and tangles of foliage. The French excelled at making delicate wrought iron and wire garden furniture in a wide variety of forms with novel designs. Iron strap, wire, and rod furnishings were promoted as being superior to cast iron in strength, durability, and affordability, in addition to being lighter weight and easy to move. These pieces were appealing for both the garden and terrace because they were less obtrusive than other types of garden furnishings due to the near invisibility of the wire. These pieces could also be placed in the cemetery, which was popular in the nineteenth century, when visits to the graves of loved ones was a regular occurrence.
Wrought-iron and wire garden seating was popular in the mid-to-late nineteenth century in both Europe and America. Wirework was a new material for garden furnishings, available due to the technical advances in the iron industry, which increased the versatility of the material during the Industrial Revolution. Iron could be worked into fine wires and wrought into the intricate and delicate motifs the Victorians desired. The strength and flexibility of the material opened new design possibilities for wirework furnishings. The frame of these furnishings was made from wrought iron and the supports and surfaces were made from wire strands drawn and interwoven by hand to complete the structure. With the proper interweaving and tensioning of the wires, stability could be achieved. These airy furnishings could also be embellished with curlicues, loops, scrolls, and basket weaves, and tangles of foliage. The French excelled at making delicate wrought iron and wire garden furniture in a wide variety of forms with novel designs. Iron strap, wire, and rod furnishings were promoted as being superior to cast iron in strength, durability, and affordability, in addition to being lighter weight and easy to move. These pieces were appealing for both the garden and terrace because they were less obtrusive than other types of garden furnishings due to the near invisibility of the wire. These pieces could also be placed in the cemetery, which was popular in the nineteenth century, when visits to the graves of loved ones was a regular occurrence.
Label Text:
Garden furnishings, also called outdoor or patio furnishings, are specifically designed for outdoor use. They are typically made of weather-resistant materials such as metal, stone, wood, wicker, and artificial stone. Cast-iron was the most popular material for garden furnishings and accessories from the mid-nineteenth to the early-twentieth century. This was in part due to systems of mass production developed in the Industrial Revolution that allowed outdoor furniture to be readily available and affordable to the public. Throughout the nineteenth century, as leisure activities increased, materials diversified, and technology was embraced, garden furnishings came to be regarded as domestic amenities and reflected changing styles. Outdoor furnishings, such as settees, chairs, fountains, urns, and tables were essential to fashionably appointed lawns, conservatories, parks, cemeteries, and gardens in America.
The garden in the nineteenth century, typical of Victorian style, tended to be excessively ornamental and complex, combining colors, textures, and materials through plants and garden ornaments. Garden furnishings, such as urns, plant stands, tables, and seating, became essential to the overall design. As an extension of the house, the garden required furniture, and outdoor seating found its way onto balconies, verandahs, and porches as well as across lawns and parks. Settees, which are two-person seats with a backrest and arms, were a popular feature of the Victorian garden. Most garden settees were designed to be suitable for use with a table and were frequently sold with matching suites of chairs, benches, and tables. Designs for garden settees followed the Victorian taste for eclectic styles and borrowed Classical, Rustic, Gothic, Rococo, Renaissance, and Oriental motifs; or they were chosen to blend with their natural surroundings in Rustic, animal, or botanical forms. Settees and other furnishings were strategically placed as the focal point or an accessory to create a specific feeling for a setting. They were used on porches and verandahs, as well as throughout the garden, to extend the architecture of the house to the grounds, providing a link between art and nature, manmade and organic. Cast-iron, wrought-iron, and wirework settees were mostly for use in the garden although some designs were suited for indoor use as well.
