Set of Four Frances Elkins Loop Side Chairs with Painted Decoration
View Similar Items
Set of Four Frances Elkins Loop Side Chairs with Painted Decoration
About the Item
- Creator:Frances Elkins (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 39 in (99.06 cm)Width: 19.5 in (49.53 cm)Depth: 19 in (48.26 cm)Seat Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 4
- Materials and Techniques:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960
- Condition:
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU824825219252
Frances Elkins
Although she doesn’t have the name recognition of Syrie Maugham or Elsie de Wolfe (known as “the mother of interior decoration”), American designer Frances Elkins was one of the most prominent grand-dame decorators of the first half of the 20th century, and arguably the most influential on the West Coast.
Born into a prosperous Milwaukee family in the clothing business, Frances Elkins, née Adler, might never have ventured outside of Wisconsin were it not for her older brother David. After graduating from Princeton University, he decided to tour Europe and study architecture there, and he brought his teenage sister along. The experience was life-changing. Adler was deeply inspired by the classical architecture he saw, while his sister was captivated by the future-looking art they encountered.
After three years abroad, Elkins returned to the States. In 1917, she married Felton Broomall Elkins, a wealthy Philadelphia–born playwright and polo player who took her to live by the sea in Monterey, California, where many of their society friends were building houses in nearby Pebble Beach. The couple bought a derelict 19th-century adobe mansion, Casa Amesti, that Elkins planned to renovate with her brother, who had established an architecture practice in Chicago designing stately homes. Elkins insisted it would be the most attractive home in northern California when she and her brother were done.
Adler understood just how to mix architectural languages to create spaces of drama and interest. Elkins, meanwhile, enlivened the rooms with a decorative mélange of French and English period furnishings along with Chinoiserie, all within a brilliant color scheme of yellow, blue and white, and arranged in the symmetrical settings her brother favored. When they were finished, Elkins was proved right — Casa Amesti was unlike any other home in northern California. It was fresh and sophisticated, warm and inviting.
One of Elkins’s first commissions was decorating the Monterey Colonial of her good friend Hester Griffin. For the living room, Elkins selected Chippendale furniture, Queen Anne mirrors and Ming screens in a stylish palette of bone and black. To give the space a contemporary twist, she added very new and daring lamps by Jean-Michel Frank and covered the scoop-back sofa and armchairs with peach corduroy, a material which was plush yet utterly unconventional as a furniture covering. It started a trend.
A savvy businesswoman, Elkins recognized commercial opportunities when she saw them, and so eventually became the first American importer of French country antiques, as well as the sole distributor of the furnishings of Frank and Alberto Giacometti in the States. She collaborated with both of these major talents on several designs.
Throughout the 1920s, Elkins decorated a host of other houses around Pebble Beach. Her local work culminated with her design of what was to become the legendary golf club, Cypress Point. She decorated the clubhouse interior in tones of beige, yellow and melon and furnished the rooms with French Provincial pieces, creating spaces that were gracious yet informal.
Eventually, Elkins opened her own workshop, where a staff of artisans reproduced favorite furnishings, lighting and accessories, in addition to realizing her own designs. Ironically, the Loop chair for which she is best known is an 18th-century design, which she reproduced only twice for the “living porch” of Mrs. Marshall Field on Long Island and the living room of the Wheeler house in the Chicago suburbs.
By the 1930s, Elkins was working frequently in San Francisco, decorating interiors for some of the city’s most prominent families, as well as designing a number of commercial projects, including the Yerba Buena Club for Women. Again, her approach was eclectic and bold. She renewed the club’s waiting room and lounge, by covering the Victorian-style seating in audacious reds and blues. And while she paid tribute to Frank in the design of the minimalist dining room’s staircase, seating and torchieres, she also splashed it with color by covering the walls in yellow velvet.
Sadly, Elkins and her brother both died relatively young in their mid-sixties. Yet not before contributing significantly to what would become cosmopolitan American style.
Find vintage Frances Elkins furniture on 1stDibs.
- American Neo-Gothic Carved Walnut Side ChairLocated in New York, NYAn American Neo-Gothic carved walnut side chair. Tall arched back with carved trefoil motif pierced carving and upholstered panel back and sea...Category
Antique 19th Century Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Walnut
- Pair of 1960s Carved Faux Bamboo Chairs from the Johnny Cash EstateLocated in New York, NYA Pair of American faux-bamboo armchairs with carved faux bamboo vertical elements forming a high black, the black metal painted frame having a slip seat with original printed velvet...Category
20th Century Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Grotto Shell Chairs, Three AvailableLocated in New York, NYHand-carved fruitwood frames with stylized dolphin-form arm from the mid 1900s. The chairs has very high quality and are unusually generous in proportions. The height of the back is ...Category
Mid-20th Century Chairs
MaterialsFruitwood
$4,000 Sale Price / item20% Off - Queen Anne Style Oak Leather Upholstered Music ChairLocated in New York, NYAn antique hardwood reading chair with foldout surface on the back. This type of chair was used for both conventional seating, or if straddled, the small surface on the back serves a...Category
Early 20th Century Queen Anne Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Set of Four David Duncan Scallop Shell Sconces with Clear Hurricane ShadesLocated in New York, NYA set of four hand-carved mahogany clam shells from rosewood Anglo Indian backplates, patinated brass sconce fittings, and hand-blown clear shades. Electrified with one candelabra-ba...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Georgian Wall Lights and Sconces
MaterialsBrass
- Set of Four Josef Frank Cushions in the "Hawaii" PatternBy Josef FrankLocated in New York, NYA set of four square cushions featuring vintage fabric by Austrian designer Josef Frank. Each cushion displays a design motif from Josef Frank's "Hawaii" pattern. Cushions may also b...Category
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Pillows and Throws
MaterialsFabric, Down, Feathers
- Selection of Frances Elkins Loop ChairsBy Frances ElkinsLocated in Atlanta, GASelection of Frances Elkins loop chairs. The chair pictured on the left in the first listing photo is a Frances Elkins loop chair, American, 1980s. ...Category
Vintage 1980s American Hollywood Regency Armchairs
MaterialsWood, Upholstery
$2,400 / item - Set of Four Frances Elkins Loop Arm ChairsBy Frances ElkinsLocated in Lambertville, NJA fabulous set of four Frances Elkins loop chairs. The armchairs are based on the 1930’s iconic models. This set of vintage chairs were made in the ...Category
Mid-20th Century American Hollywood Regency Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Wood
$12,950 / set - Set of Four Frances Elkins Style Side ChairsLocated in East Hampton, NYHandsome set of 4 veneered "Loop" chairs in the style of Frances Elkins with new Classic Cloth satin wool seats..... a great game table set of chairs....Category
Vintage 1970s Side Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery
$11,000 / set - Pair of Frances Elkins Wood Cane Seat Loop Backrest Beige Side Chairs RegencyBy Frances ElkinsLocated in Miami, FLFirst Edition Pair of Loop Side or Dining Chairs designed by Frances Elkins and made in Spain circa 1965. Regency Period with hand-carved legs, Apron Decoration and both are with th...Category
Vintage 1960s Spanish Regency Side Chairs
MaterialsCane, Wood, Paint
- Pair of Frances Elkins ChairsBy Frances ElkinsLocated in Westport, CTPair of black handmade custom Frances Elkins.Category
Vintage 1940s American Armchairs
$5,400 / set - Sculptural Loop Settee and Chair in the Manner of Frances ElkinsBy Frances ElkinsLocated in Atlanta, GASculptural loop settee and chair in the manner of Frances Elkins, circa 1950s. They have been repainted and are ready to use, outdoors as pati...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Patio and Garden Furniture
MaterialsMetal