Abstract:
A Study of the Development and Influences of the “Balloon Back Chair” in Early
Nineteenth-Century America analyzes and explores the history and origin of three
examples of exceptional curvilinear chairs made in New York in the early
nineteenth century. Although this chair form, an orphan in the study of
nineteenth-century furniture designs, is significantly different in design from
earlier nineteenth-century forms, this departure from the rectilinearity of the
preceding Federal style has not been the focus of scholars or connoisseurs. As
such, consensus is elusive on defining most aspects of this chair.
