Oval Table with Falling Leaves - Case Study Example

Final Museum Research Project: Oval Table with Falling Leaves The oval table with falling leaves is well presented at the Metropolitan museum of art with the accession number 10.125.130, gallery 774 (Metropolitan Museum of Art). The oval table with falling leaves was one of the many furniture decorations embraced by the 17th century American. Before the 17th century, most colonialists only possessed basic furniture with few decorations. Though most homes could afford a chair, table and beds, they were mostly made effortless in design. The ova table with falling leaved replaced most of these simply designed tables, because was one of the any tables that had joining leaves and trestles that had boards for dining. Most of the simple tables in the 17th century were used in large halls. However, after inventing the oval table with falling leaves, the culture changed and people started adopting the idea of having family dining and sitting rooms. Hence, when the oval table emerged in the 17th century stores, it signified the change from formal American dining trends to informal dining trends. In the image provided at the museum website, shows that the table does not look like the other tables at the museum’s website which are smooth and have fewer legs. For example, the table has a total of 8 legs and the top side of the table is oval in shape with a rough surface. Given that the rich 17th century American could afford buying many tables for different occasions such matching dressing tables or dining tables, carpenters had to come up with other designs that suited those who could not afford to buy many tables. Hence, the oval table was mostly suited for a wider market which included the upper and middle class families. My object as described above was no doubt important in the 17th century because it catered for the needs of both the middle class and upper class families in America. Until it was 1700s, most of the furniture that people possessed was only available to those who were wealthy. As the carpenters created more furniture such as tables which were available to all, the middle class families were in better positions to purchase and replace the old tables with new ones. The new tables, such as the oval table with falling leaves offered the middle class families with the advantage of cleanness from insects such as termites, worms and moths (Jobe 122). The tables were also durable and lighter than the previously made tables. As noted in the picture showing the table at the metropolitan museum of art, it is clear that the many curves (Metropolitan museum of art, museum label for Mrs. Russell Sage). Perhaps with was a technique designed to discourage termites from damaging the tables. However, the material used on the table is pine and soft maple which are both not resistant to termite infestation. Most of the colonialists during this time associated status and power with the furnishing capabilities at home. Such tables were some of the best inexpensive products and new designs that corresponded with the new changes in fashion and economics that the 17th century American family was experiencing. As a young boy in the 1900s when people knew as William Robinson, my dream of becoming a carpenter got realized when my family moved to the West. Unlike most tables I had seen, when I was young which had legs that were entirely covered with cloth known as “little skirts”, the oval table was one of a kind. I had never seen a table that had falling leaves and at the same time affordable to the ordinary families in the West. As mentioned by Krill in his book, most craftsmen and table makers were mostly found in one town or places that were in proximity with each other (45). When we moved to the West, it was easier for me to get an apprentice because they were all located in one town. Making different comparison with real tables made by other table makers was easy because their location was next to the shop where I was working. As identified by Krill, most people were fond of attending tea parties and luncheons so during the weekends, we would get a lot of orders from colonial governors and middle class families. These were orders which were often made only after the customers made payments. The patterns of the table would often be made based on the customers’ preferences and desires. One most notable aspect of table making was that most people made many orders for the oval table with falling leaves. The first table that I made in 1909 was not as perfect as the customer wanted. This was a problem and I had to take more time learning from the apprentice. It was only after learning for a long time about the designs that I was in a better position to create the best oval table with falling leaves in town. Colonialists in America in the 17th century, particularly the royal governors had set a cultural example, where some of the wealthiest people in towns emulated. Most colonial families had different tastes when it came to furniture preferences and designs (Krill 43). Factors such as the level of income in a family, the ethnicity of the family and the religious and political affiliations had a role to play in what people wanted in their tables. This is the reason that led to the carpenters of craftsmen changing the old ideas about the functionality of tables and the design. For example, the oval table was designed with two leaves or more in few cases, to not only save on space in the house, but accommodate more plates and bowls for many visitors. A look at the picture of the table also shows that it has a shiny appearance on the legs (Metropolitan Museum of Art). It is imperative to remember that the new ideas on tables and designs had to incorporate the space-saving factor. As America became industrialized and most people moved to urban centers, there was shortage of land. Due to shortage of land, the houses that were constructed were smaller because the population was growing at a high rate. Small houses meant that the furniture adopted in the 17th century had to fit and leave enough space for movement. It is worth noting that in the 1730s, people liked tea parties and taking a lot of teas and “luncheons”. According to Krill, the price of tea in 1700s had dropped to an affordable price which fuelled the idea of taking tea. Hence, since most people were fond of taking tea and calling their friends to tea parties, they had to embrace the idea of highly decorated tables, because these tables would match with the events in which most guests from high incomes earning families attended in their expensive clothes (Krill 56). A table that had falling leaves and curved, decorative legs such as the one in the picture became extremely fashionable, such as the way the electronic gadgets such as smart phones and iPads are fashionable today. Unlike most of the round tables, those were commonly built before the 17th century, the oval table with falling leaves was created in a way that the top part of the table would withstand pressure or damage from liquids spilled during parties or the bar fights that were common in the wild west. The leaves were advantageous because they could fold over the top side (Lyion 201). These leaves were often square or round in shape allowing the users of the table to place candlesticks on the corners that projected from the tables. The making of these tables was also not easy, particularly at a time when furniture making were skills which were learnt from one family member to the other through learning. The legs show that the table maker must have trained before, for the maker to come up with such a successful construction design. The makers also had to work in a perfect way to satisfy customer wants and patterns. Since this was an age where there was no technology, the craftsmen could only incorporate new designs by learning and studying the main objects in existence (Jobe 123). In other cases, they would learn from books with drawings on tables. As mentioned in Jobe’s book, a table maker in Portsmouth had access to a sample table before he decided to make one of his own (124). The incorporation of new designs, such as the change from round and square tables to oval tables with falling leaves was highly dependent on the skills of the table makers. Krill argues that most of the furniture makers were mostly situated in the same town or in close proximity, which explains the trend among them which involved teaching others (66). In conclusion, as mentioned earlier, the oval table with falling leaves is in gallery 774, at the Metropolitan Museum of art. The tables appeared in 1700s in most of the middle class houses and the houses of the governors. Due to the extensive techniques that were used in decorations, the oval table with falling leaves had survived for long to this century as showcased at the museum. The changing cultural trends in colonial America were the key contributor in the creation of the table. From the information I collected about the table, if the colonial Americans were not fond of teas and fashionable, expensive tables, perhaps the oval table might not have been created (Lyion 201). The implementation of such tables with leaves not only showed how the culture in colonial America was changing, but it showed the colonial Americans wanted o live in comfort. The highly structured table legs were always pivoted into vertical positions which showed a lot of creativity on the part of craftsmen and the American families. It is also important to note that the oval table was not only used in tea parties and luncheons, but was useful in hospitals and offices which were mostly located in urban areas where land space was limited and houses were small. As noted in the picture below, the oval table with falling leaves was created with leaves that make the table larger and more appealing to customers with smaller houses. Picture of Oval Table with falling leaves Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Accession number: 10.125.130, on view in gallery 774. Works Cited Jobe, Brock. Portsmouth Furniture: Masterworks from the New Hampshire Seacoast. Boston: Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, 1993. . Krill, Rosemary. Early American Decorative Arts, 1620-1860: A Handbook for Interpreters. Rowman Altamira, 2010. Lyion, Irving. The colonial furniture of New England: A study of the domestic furniture in use in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1892. . Metropolitan Museum of Art, museum label for Mrs. Russell Sage, Boston, 1909 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Oval Table with Falling leaves. 1909. Photograph. n.p. Web. . Read More