Wendell Castle
(American, 1932-2018)
Set of Five Zephyr Chairs and Game Table, c. 1974-1976
walnut, curly maple
signed 'WC 74' and 'WC 76'
Table | H 29 x W 39 x D 39 inches

Provenance:
Acquired directly from the artist

Exhibited:
Language of Wood, State University College, Buffalo, NY, 1975

American Craft 1977--The Philadelphia Craft Show, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA, 1977

Furniture As Art II, Fendrick Gallery, Washington, DC, 1978

Paley/Castle/Wildenhain, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY, 1979

Literature:
Barbaralee Diamonstein, Handmade in America: Conversations With Fourteen Craftmasters, New York, 1983, illustrated p. 30
Silas Kopf, A Marquetry Odyssey: Historical Objects and Personal Work, Manchester, VT, 2008, illustrated p. 18

Emily Evans Eerdmans, Wendell Castle, A Catalogue Raisonne 1958-2012, New York, 2014, illustrated p. 100, 101, 119

Lot Essay:
€œIt is important not to be subservient to a material. The significant thing about my work is not what it is made of but what it is €-Wendell Castle Breaking from the notion of traditional woodworking, Castle's furniture helped pioneer the engagement between studio craft and art. The catalyst to Castle's career began with his travelling one-man show The Furniture of Wendell Castle curated by gallerist Lee Nordness in 1968. The following year Castle would be featured in Nordness's seminal exhibition Objects:USA alongside fellow woodworkers Sam Maloof (Lot 18), George Nakashima (Lot 21), J. B. Blunk, Art Carpenter (Lot 17) and others. Following critical acclaim Castle continued exploring the hybrid possibilities of combining conventional furniture with sculptural experimentation. By the early 1970s when this set was executed, Castle had already redefined the assumptions of traditional woodworking. Around this time Castle began employing his first team of studio assistants one of which was Silas Kopf (Lot 22) who worked on the production of this Set of Five Zephyr Chairs and Game Table. This table is one of four Game Tables from this period and exemplifies the bridge between sculpture and studio furniture that Castle would become synonymous with. It is no secret that Castle's favourite form to experiment with was the chair which he retooled throughout his life. While several versions of the Zephyr Chairs exist, each example is unique. Each chair was made with bent laminated hoops and finger joints with the back and seat of each being hand-sculpted. This set synthesizes Castle's respect for the materiality of wood without having the process be the sole outcome. Instead, a deep reverence for historical precedent and abstraction of everyday form is imbued in this early work.

Table is fitted with two frieze drawersChair | H 28 1/2 x W 23 1/2 x D 22 inches
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