TWO chairs by CR Ashbee, a leading figure in the Arts and Crafts movement, have been acquired by the Court Barn museum in Chipping Campden.
Ashbee founded the Guild of Handicraft in 1888 and moved to the town in 1902 from the east end of London believing that craft was at home in the country.
Made of walnut with ebony and mother-of-pearl inlay in c1902, the pair are now displayed on a plinth adjacent to a Guild of Handicraft firescreen of 1906.
His work and that of the Guild forms the core of Court Barn’s collection but until the acquisition of the pair, the only woodwork the museum had was small scale and postdates the dissolution of the Guild in 1907.
Museum curator Sarah McCormick Healy said: “These chairs are a welcome addition to our collection.
Ashbee is best known as a silver and jewellery designer so it is interesting and thought-provoking for visitors to see the full range of his work and examine how ideas about design can be adapted to different media.
“We currently do not have any furniture by Ashbee in our collection, which formed a large part of the Guild’s work.
“These chairs would enhance and celebrate the history and legacy of craft and design generally in the North Cotswolds and encourage people to learn within the context of craft in the early 20th Century.
Similar chairs were included in the 1903 Arts and Crafts Exhibition in London and were highlighted in the influential German periodical, ‘Der Moderne Stil’ (volume 5, 1903).
This suggests that the pair was made after the Guild moved from London to Chipping Campden.
The pair were bought with assistance from the Art Fund, and the Arts Council England/V&A Purchase Grant Fund.
Visit Court Barn Museum here for more information about CR Ashbee and the Guild.
