British Furniture 1820-1920: The Luxury Market by Christopher Payne.
British Furniture 1820-1920: The Luxury Market by Christopher Payne, published by ACC Art Books, was compiled with the help of Butchoff Antiques, which supplied many of the illustrations.
To aid in Payne’s research, the London gallery granted him full access to its archives and research library. Ian Butchoff encouraged the book and sponsored the project.
In the acknowledgements Payne writes: “Without doubt my greatest thanks are to Ian Butchoff for initiating the concept of this book and his generous sponsorship.”
Other dealers who supported the project include Martin Levy of H Blairman and Son and Giles Forster now of Adrian Alan, along with many others from the auction world.
The publication aims to offer a comprehensive assessment of British furniture design in from the early Victorians to the 1920s. It includes 184 black and white illustrations and more than 1000 in colour.
Formerly a director at Sotheby’s, Payne is an independent furniture historian who appears on BBC’s Antiques Roadshow. His previous titles include Francois Linke, 1855-1946: The Belle Epoque of French Furniture.
The book is available for £125 from regular retailers or online.
Moorcroft for free
William Moorcroft, Potter: Individuality by Design by Jonathan Mallinson.
Separately, Jonathan Mallinson, a collector and emeritus fellow at Trinity College Oxford, has released William Moorcroft, Potter: Individuality by Design as a free publication via Open Book Publishers.
It was developed with several dealers including AD Antiques, Andrew Muir, Rumours Decorative Arts and Wayne Hopton.
Mallinson says: “This book was inspired by a small wartime pomegranate vase seen at an antiques centre.
“It sparked an interest in William Moorcroft’s pottery which was greatly developed by conversations with some of the leading decorative arts dealers of the last two decades.”
He undertook further research in the National Art Library and in the Stoke-on-Trent City Archives where Moorcroft’s archive is held.
The dealers consulted also contributed many of the illustrations.
Mallinson adds: “Such is the incomparable benefit of fairs, and the personal interaction they make possible; the exchange of knowledge is as valuable as the trade in pots.”
