Charles Sumner Greene (American, 1868-1957) & Henry Mather Greene (American, 1870-1954). A Group of Six Chairs for the Dra... (Total: 6 Items)

Description

Charles Sumner Greene (American, 1868-1957) & Henry Mather Greene (American, 1870-1954)
A Group of Six Chairs for the Drawing Room of the Cordelia Culbertson House, Pasadena, California, circa 1913, executed by the Peter Hall Workshop
Inlaid mahogany, upholstery
42 x 28 x 23 inches (106.7 x 71.1 x 58.4 cm) (side chair, each)
Sumner Greene His True

Property from the Cordelia Culbertson House, Pasadena, California

PROVENANCE:
Cordelia, Kate & Margaret Culbertson, Cordelia Culbertson House, Pasadena, California;
Mrs. Dudley P. Allen, Cordelia Culbertson House, Pasadena, California;
Private Collection, San Diego, California;
Private Collection, California, purchased from the above.

This lot comprising:
4 Greene & Greene side chairs;
2 Greene & Greene armchairs.
6 Total

Founded by brothers Charles Sumner and Henry Mather Greene, Greene & Greene emerged as the foremost
Arts and Crafts architectural firm in California by the early 20th century. In 1911, the firm designed the Cordelia
Culbertson House in Pasadena, California for three unmarried sisters: Cordelia, Kate, and Margaret Culbertson
and soon thereafter conceived and sourced furnishings, creating a Gesamtkunstwerk (total work of art) befitting
California in the new century. The house and its furnishings demonstrate a dramatic departure for the firm, as it
embraced Chinese design with more slender, curved forms and delicate details rather than the angular, sturdy
construction for which it had become known. The present lots were designed by Charles Greene, executed
by the Pasadena workshop of John Hall, and installed in the public rooms of the House while it was occupied
by the sisters and the second owner, Mrs. Dudley P Allen, who purchased the home in 1917 and acted as its
steward until her death in 1944. The elegant sofas and chairs were executed in mahogany, with slightly curved
backs, scrolled arms, and tapered legs with inlaid stylized floral motifs. Originally upholstered in black and
gold damask ordered by Charles Greene from F. N. Dowling, the pieces were reupholstered by the present
owner, who purchased them from a San Diego estate in 1980.



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