The Shakers: History, Culture and Craft (Shire Library USA)
Lesley Herzberg
Language: English
Pages: 64
ISBN: 0747814627
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Leaving Manchester, England, in 1774 to avoid religious persecution, the Shakers crossed the Atlantic and during the next 50 years established 19 villages in the United States from Maine to Kentucky.
Guided by the principles of utility, honesty, and order, the ultimate goal of the Shakers was to create a heaven on earth in both their worship and their work. Consequently, careful craftsmanship, signature details, an dthe commitment to excellence are seen in every object they produced, ranging from free-standing tables, chairs, desks, boxes, and case clocks to built-in cupboards and cases of drawers.
The unique buildings, objects, and lifestyle of the Shakers has set them apart in American art and culture as a matter of course, but ever since "Shaker Handicraft" - the first major Shaker exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1935 -the appreciation for Americana and folk art has continued to grow. Today the spirit of Shaker craft, combined with its clean lines, solid construction, and honest functionality, make it one of the most popular and timeless design categories in the US and beyond.
Lebanon, and Hancock were all photographically documented as part of the American government project, the Index of American Design. In each Shaker dwelling house, the upper floors were mainly reserved for bedrooms, or retiring rooms as the Shakers referred to them. Several Believers would share the same retiring room. With many beds in each room, it was essential that they could be moved easily for cleaning. Therefore, Shaker beds often had rollers on the feet, and were constructed out of
Village, 2006. Grant, Jerry V., and Douglas R. Allen. Shaker Furniture Makers. (Hancock Shaker Village.) University Press of New England, 1989. Hadd, Brother Arnold. “Agreeable to Our Understanding: The Shaker Covenant.” Shaker Quarterly 24 (1996): 87, 109. Herzberg, Lesley. A Promising Venture: Shaker Photographs from the WPA. American Communal Societies Series; No. 7. Richard W. Couper Press, Hamilton College Library, 2012. Kirk, John T. The Shaker World: Art, Life, Belief. Harry N. Abrams,
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showed a great love of color. Her best-known work is the most frequently reproduced Shaker gift drawing, The Tree of Life. The text underneath it seems to be an afterthought for folk-art lovers, yet it is the text that tells us of the real importance of the tree: CITY OF PEACE Monday July 3rd 1854. I received a draft of a beautiful Tree penciled on a large sheet of white paper bearing ripe fruit. I saw it plainly; it looked very singular to me. I have since learned that this tree grows in the
to make a variety of poplarware items. This silk bookmark was a marketing piece for the Mount Lebanon Shakers. Successful Shaker enterprises often took on the name of the Trustee who oversaw the production. Emma J. Neale ran the cloak business in the early twentieth century. Shaker sisters also produced cloaks that became fashionable in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Women from the World saw Shaker sisters wearing long cloaks and desired the warm, woolen outwear. Orders began to