Windsor Chair

Artisan: William Clinger painted by Susan Rountree
Date: 1992
Intended Room: Housekeeper’s Parlour
Dimensions: TBC
Inventory number: TBC

Provenance: Purchased on eBay in April 2022.

This is an extraordinary piece of furniture. Lift it up and you’ll be astonished at how light it is. Run your finger lightly over the delicate struts of its back, and you’ll be shocked at how fragile they are. It’s a little work of art. The chair itself was created by William Clinger, who specialised in Windsor chairs, and it’s one of the most beautiful I’ve seen by him, with beautifully shaped arms and even a carved seat.

Afterwards it was painted in this dark, dark green colour – verging on black – by Susan Rountree, who signed and dated it on the bottom: ‘Painted & finished by Susan H. Rountree, AARFAC 1992’. I’ve tried looking up ‘AARFAC’ and it seems to refer to the ‘Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Center’ in Williamsburg. This would make sense, as I’ve also found a note that Susan gave a lecture during Williamsburg’s Christmas season in 1987. And of course, a gorgeous chair like this is very much in the folk art tradition.