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Title details for Thomas Day by Patricia Phillips Marshall - Available

Thomas Day

Master Craftsman and Free Man of Color

by Patricia Phillips Marshall
Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll
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Thomas Day (1801–61), a free man of color from Milton, North Carolina, became the most successful cabinetmaker in North Carolina — white or black — during a time when most blacks were enslaved and free blacks were restricted in their movements and activities. His surviving furniture and architectural woodwork still represent the best of nineteenth-century craftsmanship and aesthetics.
In this lavishly illustrated book, Patricia Phillips Marshall and Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll show how Day plotted a carefully charted course for success in antebellum southern society. Beginning in the 1820s, he produced fine furniture for leading white citizens and in the 1840s and '50s diversified his offerings to produce newel posts, stair brackets, and distinctive mantels for many of the same clients. As demand for his services increased, the technological improvements Day incorporated into his shop contributed to the complexity of his designs.
Day's style, characterized by undulating shapes, fluid lines, and spiraling forms, melded his own unique motifs with popular design forms, resulting in a distinctive interpretation readily identified to his shop. The photographs in the book document furniture in public and private collections and architectural woodwork from private homes not previously associated with Day. The book provides information on more than 160 pieces of furniture and architectural woodwork that Day produced for 80 structures between 1835 and 1861.
Through in-depth analysis and generous illustrations, including over 240 photographs (20 in full color) and architectural photography by Tim Buchman, Marshall and Leimenstoll provide a comprehensive perspective on and a new understanding of the powerful sense of aesthetics and design that mark Day's legacy.

  • Creators

  • Series

    Richard Hampton Jenrette Series in Architecture and the Decorative Arts

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    May 22, 2010

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9780807895719

    • PDF ebook

      • ISBN: 9798890874924
      • File size: 37275 KB
    Kindle restrictions

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Library Journal

      September 15, 2010

      In an era during which the majority of African descendants living in North Carolina were enslaved, Thomas Day, a "free man of color," became a wealthy and prominent furniture designer. Day's incredible story is exhaustively researched and deftly illustrated with his distinctive pieces from 1835 to 1860. The beautifully crafted furnishings featured throughout the book leave little room to deny that he was an industry innovator and pioneer. His ability to build a successful business in spite of many competitors and racial oppression is as compelling as his handiwork. Though Day's business eventually suffered because of a declining economy and backlash toward free blacks, he left a rich body of work. Marshall (curator of decorative arts, North Carolina Museum of History) and Leimenstoll (interior architecture, Univ. of North Carolina at Greensboro) provide a fascinating study of both the entrepreneur and his craft. VERDICT This book well serves the scholar and casual reader. Students of architectural designs can find inspiration in Day's timeless motifs, and historians researching Day and the social politics of the time are given ample information. Browsers will also be drawn to the eye-catching photographs and engrossing text. Highly recommended.--Ajoke Kokodoko, Oakland P.L.

      Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • PDF ebook
Kindle restrictions

subjects

Languages

  • English

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