Gerrard Hopkins
Armchair
1769-1779
Physical Qualities
Mahogany, tulip poplar, upholstery, 39 3/4 x 29 1/4 x 23 in. (101 x 74.3 x 58.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of William C. Whitridge, Stevenson, Maryland
Object Number
1977.59.2
A multiplicity of curves knits this armchair into a powerful piece of domestic sculpture. The chair’s attribution to Gerrard Hopkins rests on a labeled high chest of drawers in a private collection. Hopkins trained in Philadelphia but left to work in Baltimore from 1767 until his death. While the chair is stylistically close to works from Philadelphia, there are clear differences. The molded arm supports curve outward at their bases, rather than curving inward as is usual with Philadelphia pieces. In addition, a Philadelphia chair would have side rails tenoned through the back legs, but that’s not the case here.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by gift, 1977; William C. Whitridge, Stevenson, Maryland, by 1977; Joseph Kindig, Jr., Antiques, York, Pennsylvania; Breckinridge Long Sale, Maryland, 1959; The Honorable and Mrs. Breckinridge Long, Maryland, ca. 1930; Bowie family of Prince George's County, Maryland.
"Exhibition and Public Sale of Antiques from the estates of the late Honorable and Mrs. Breckinridge Long", 'Montpelier Manor,' Laurel, Maryland, 1959, no. 508.
William Voss Elder III, Baltimore Museum of Art, "Maryland Queen Anne & Chippendale Furniture", March 5-April 14, 1968.
William Voss Elder III, et al, The Art Gallery, University of Maryland, College Park, "350 Years of Art & Architecture in Maryland", October 26-December 1, 1984.
"Property from the Collection of Mr. & Mrs. George Fenimore Johnson", Sotheby's New York, January 19, 2008, p.77.
William Voss Elder III, Baltimore Museum of Art, "Maryland Queen Anne & Chippendale Furniture", March 5-April 14, 1968.
William Voss Elder III, et al, The Art Gallery, University of Maryland, College Park, "350 Years of Art & Architecture in Maryland", October 26-December 1, 1984.
"Property from the Collection of Mr. & Mrs. George Fenimore Johnson", Sotheby's New York, January 19, 2008, p.77.
Voss Elder III, William. "Maryland Queen Anne & Chippendale Furniture," Baltimore: Museum of Art, 1968, p. 21, cat. 5.
'Maryland Furniture 1760-1840,' "The Magazine Antiques," February 1977, p. 358, fig. 5.
Elder III, William Voss and Jayne E. Stokes. "American Furniture 1680-1880: From the Collection of the Baltimore Museum of Art," Baltimore: Museum of Art, 1987, p.28-29, ill. 15.
Harold Sack and Deanne Levison, 'Queen Anne and Chippendale Armchairs in America,' "The Magazine Antiques," May 1990, p. 1166, fig. 3.
On View at the BMA
