Candlestick (one of a pair)

Bruce J. Talbert|Hart, Son, Peard & Co.

ca. 1870 · Wrought brass, inset with cabochons and quartz · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Bruce J. Talbert was an influential Scottish designer who is mainly known for his richly-ornamented furniture in the Gothic style. The Pericles Cabinet (2015.281a, b) is emblematic of his most ambitious work. He was also a successful commercial designer and these candlesticks represent the work he did for a middle class market, which included schemes for interior furnishings like textiles, metalwork, stained glass and carpets. In 1868 (though dated 1867) he published his first and most influential book, Gothic Forms Applied to Furniture, Metal Work and Decoration for Domestic Purposes, which championed the structural honesty of the reformed Gothic style. The candlesticks represent the juncture of historicizing imagery with modern manufacturing. Intended for a middle class market rather than an elite one, they speak to the Victorian celebration of what was perceived as Britain’s “own” style, the Gothic.

Artist

Bruce J. Talbert|Hart, Son, Peard & Co.

Date

ca. 1870

Medium

Wrought brass, inset with cabochons and quartz

Culture

British

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Purchase, Gift of Irwin Untermyer, by exchange, 2015