Bruce James Talbert (1838 – 28 January 1881) was a Scottish architect, interior designer and author, best known for his furniture designs. In the United States, he influenced the

Modern Gothic Modern Gothic, also known as Reformed Gothic, was an Aestheticism, Aesthetic Movement style of the 1860s and 1870s in architecture, furniture and decorative arts, that was popular in Great Britain and the United States. A rebellion against the exc ...

work of the

Herter Brothers Herter is a German occupational surname for a herdsman. Notable people with the surname include: * Albert Herter (1871–1950), American painter; son of Christian, the furniture maker * Christian Herter (1895–1966), American politician; son of ...

Kimbel and Cabus Kimbel & Cabus was a Victorian-era furniture and decorative arts firm based in New York City. The partnership was formed in 1862 between German-born cabinetmaker Anthony Kimbel (c. 1821–1895) and French-born cabinetmaker Joseph Cabus (1824&nd ...

Frank Furness Frank Heyling Furness (November 12, 1839 - June 27, 1912) was an American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his diverse, muscular, often unordinarily scaled b ...

, and

Daniel Pabst Daniel Pabst (June 11, 1826 – July 15, 1910) was a German-born American Victorian decorative arts#Furniture, cabinetmaker of the Victorian Era. He is credited with some of the most extraordinary custom interiors and hand-crafted furniture in th ...

Biography

He studied at the

High School of Dundee The High School of Dundee is an independent, co-educational, day school in Dundee, Scotland, which provides nursery, primary and secondary education to just over one thousand pupils. Its foundation has been dated to 1239, and it is the only priv ...

, then under a

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

woodcarver named Millar. In

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, he was apprenticed to architect Charles Edward (ca. 1855-57), worked as an assistant to architect William Nairne Tait (1857–60), and as a draftsman for architect Campbell Douglas (1860–62). He moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

in 1862 to design furniture for Doveston, Bird & Hull; but later that year was hired by

Francis Skidmore Francis Alfred Skidmore (1817 – 13 November 1896) was a British metalworker best known for high-profile commissions, including the glass and metal roof of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (1859), the Hereford Cathedral choir scr ...

at Art Manufactures in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its ...

. At Art Manufactures he did drafting work on Sir

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he started ...

Hereford Screen The Hereford Screen is a great choir screen designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott (1811–1878) and made by Coventry metalworking firm Skidmore & Co. for Hereford Cathedral, England in 1862. It was one of the Gothic Revival works in iron ...

(1862), and on Scott's

Albert Memorial The Albert Memorial, directly north of the Royal Albert Hall in Kensington Gardens, London, was commissioned by Queen Victoria in memory of her beloved husband Prince Albert, who died in 1861. Designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the Gothic ...

(designed 1863, completed 1872). He moved to London in 1866 to design furniture for Holland & Sons. The following year his Reformed Gothic furniture won a silver medal at the 1867 Paris Exhibition. In 1868 he became a designer for

Gillows of Lancaster and London Gillows of Lancaster and London, also known as Gillow & Co., was an English furniture making firm based in Lancaster, Lancashire, and in London. It was founded around in Lancaster in about 1730 by Robert Gillow (1704–1772). Gillows was owned b ...

. He also designed metalwork, tiles, stained glass, textiles, and wallpaper. Talbert's first book, ''Gothic Forms Applied to Furniture, Metal Work and Decoration for Domestic Purposes'', proved to be influential on the commercial production of furniture. He recommended framed construction, decorative inlay,

low-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

carving, and the use of large, flat metal hinges.(Payne, p136) His work with Gillows was displayed at numerous international exhibitions, including the International Exhibition of 1873, and his designs in the

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

and Jacobean styles were imitated by many cabinet making firms. His designs tended to be highly detailed, including bold geometric inlaid patterns, intricately carved squares of boxwood and rows of small turned spindles. Some pieces included a carved verse with a moral message. Talbert died at age 43 of alcoholism. His work is included in the collections of the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

and the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

Publications

''Gothic Forms Applied to Furniture, Metal Work, and Decoration for Domestic Purposes'', was published in London in 1868, and in the United States in 1873. That was followed by ''Examples of Ancient & Modern Furniture, Metal Work, Tapestries, Decorations'', published in London in 1876, and in the United States in 1877. His third book, ''Fashionable Furniture: A Collection of Three Hundred and Fifty Original Designs Representing Cabinet Work, Upholstery and Decoration'' (1881), was published posthumously. File:Cupboard exhibited-at-Paris-Exhibition-1867-Gothic-Forms-Applied-to-Furniture.jpg, Illustration from ''Gothic Forms Applied to Furniture, Metal Work, and Decoration for Domestic Purposes'' (1868). File:Dining Room-Examples-of-Ancient-and-Modern-Furniture-1876.jpg, Illustration from ''Examples of Ancient and Modern Furniture, Metal Work, Tapestries, Decorations'' (1876). File:Parlor_by_Talbert_1881_Cabinet_Maker.jpg, Illustration from ''The Cabinet Maker and Art Furnisher'' (1881).

Selected works

* ''Sleeping Beauty Sideboard'' (1867), manufactured by Holland & Sons,

, London. * ''Pet Sideboard'' (ca. 1871), manufactured by Gillow & Co., Victoria and Albert Museum, London. * ''Dundee Cabinet'' (ca. 1872), manufactured by Gillow & Co., Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster. * Sideboard (ca. 1872), manufactured by Gillow & Co., Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster. * ''Juno Cabinet'' (1878), manufactured by Jackson & Graham, Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Won the Grand Prix at the 1878 Paris Exhibition.

Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster The Judges' Lodgings, formerly a town house and now a museum, is located between Church Street and Castle Hill, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed buildi ...

Two

sideboard A sideboard, also called a buffet, is an item of furniture traditionally used in the dining room for serving food, for displaying serving dishes, and for storage. It usually consists of a set of cabinets, or cupboards, and one or more drawers ...

s designed by Talbert are on display at the Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster. The ''Dundee Cabinet'' (ca. 1872) is made of stained baywood with inlaid panels of

thuya Thuya (sometimes transliterated as Touiyou, Thuiu, Tuya, Tjuyu or Thuyu) was an Egyptian noblewoman and the mother of queen Tiye, and the wife of Yuya. She is the grandmother of Akhenaten, and great grandmother of Tutankhamun. Biography Thu ...

and

boxwood ''Buxus'' is a genus of about seventy species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood. The boxes are native to western and southern Europe, southwest, southern and eastern Asia, Africa, Madagascar, northernmost South ...

. Talbert's characteristic carved squares, geometric designs and rows of spindles are clearly evident, and it is stamped "Gillows of Lancaster." An identical piece appears in a drawing dated 8 March 1872 in his ''Gillows' Estimate Sketch Book''. The drawing is annotated "Inlaid bird panel as before," which seems to indicate that a similar cabinet had been made previously. A more elaborated version of the cabinet appears in Talbert's ''Examples of Ancient and Modern Furniture'' (1876).Display panel, the Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster The second sideboard (ca. 1872), made of

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

with panels of

and iron strap hinges, is on display in the butler's pantry. File:Bruce james talbert per skidmore art manufactures co., orologio da mensola, inghilterra 1865 ca.jpg, Clock (ca. 1865),

Indianapolis Museum of Art The Indianapolis Museum of Art (IMA) is an encyclopedic art museum located at Newfields, a campus that also houses Lilly House, The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park: 100 Acres, the Gardens at Newfields, the Beer Garden, and more. It i ...

. File:Cabinet Talbert Holland Sons 1867.jpg, Sideboard (1867). Part of the display that won a silver medal at the 1867 Paris Exhibition. File:Cabinet, Bruce James Talbert, 1867 - IMG 1718.JPG, Sideboard (1867),

Carnegie Museum of Art The Carnegie Museum of Art, is an art museum in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Originally known as the Department of Fine Arts, Carnegie Institute and was at what is now the Main Branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsbur ...

. File:Dining Chair LACMA M.2000.51.jpg, Dining chair (ca. 1867),

Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California, Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Pa ...

. Bruce james talbert per gillow and company, mobile da disegno, 1871-72.jpg, Sideboard (ca. 1871),

. File:Judges' Lodgings 2014 GLAM 1872 Dundee Cabinet 2708.JPG, Dundee Cabinet (ca. 1872),

Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster The Judges' Lodgings, formerly a town house and now a museum, is located between Church Street and Castle Hill, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed buildi ...

File:Judges' Lodgings 2014 GLAM 1872 Talbert 2658c.JPG, Sideboard (ca. 1872), Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster File:Hanging Corner Cabinet LACMA M.2002.8.1.jpg, Hanging corner cabinet (ca. 1875),

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

The ''Pericles dressoir'' was designed to be a part of the British exhibition at Paris International Exhibition in 1867. Its name comes from a play written by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

Pericles, Prince of Tyre ''Pericles, Prince of Tyre'' is a Jacobean play written at least in part by William Shakespeare and included in modern editions of his collected works despite questions over its authorship, as it was not included in the First Folio. It was pu ...

. Some parts of the play are engraven into the furniture. File:Mantel clock frame MET DP-12252-022.jpg, Mantel clock (ca. 1870) File:Sideboard, known as The Pericles Dressoir MET DP-898-001.jpg, Sideboard known as the ''Pericles dressoir'' File:Sideboard, known as The Pericles Dressoir MET DP-898-002.jpg, Central panel of the ''Pericles dressoir'' File:Sideboard, known as The Pericles Dressoir MET DP-898-003.jpg, Woodwork on the ''Pericles dressoir''

References

Bibliography

* * Sally MacDonald, "Gothic Forms Applied to Furniture: The Early Work of Bruce James Talbert," ''Furniture History'', vol. 23 (1987), pp. 39–66. * Simon Jervis, "Charles, Bevan & Talbert," ''The Decorative Arts of the Victorian Period'', ed. S. Wright (1989), pp. 15–29. {{DEFAULTSORT:Talbert, Bruce James 1838 births 1881 deaths People educated at the High School of Dundee Scottish furniture designers British furniture makers Arts and Crafts movement artists Scottish interior designers 19th-century Scottish architects