Thomas Molesworth, were he alive today, would be both proud and amazed at the influence his Shoshone Furniture Company and the Cody artists' colony he inspired would have on his old hometown and the Western Design movement seventy-two years after he started producing furniture. Based on nearly two decades of buying, selling, pursuing, and researching Molesworth furniture, Terry Winchell has created a definitive book that covers all spectrums of Molesworth's work, including the influence of the other artists who made his style unique, as well as stylistically and financially successful. The fact that Molesworth's furniture career spanned thirty-plus years speaks for itself. An excellent guide for collectors of Molesworth's work, this book is also an invaluable resource for fans of the Western Design movement. Just as Gustav Stickley was influenced by John Ruskin and William Morris, Molesworth was certainly influenced by the Stickleys and others in the Arts and Crafts movement. Molesworth's early training at the Art Institute of Chicago as well as the influence of the Arts and Crafts movement are apparent in the simplicity and balance of his designs--yet he went a step further by using silhouettes, bright colors, and Native American motifs to personalize his efforts. He was not satisfied to stop there, however. Molesworth showcases furniture on display at the Buffalo Bill Historic Center (Cody, WY), the Museum of the American West (Los Angeles, CA), the Bear Butte Visitors' Center (Sturgis, SD), and Yawkay Plantation (Georgetown, SC), among many other locations. -- amazon.com
|
