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GERALD SUMMERS (BRITISH 1899-1967) FOR THE MAKERS OF SIMPLE FURNITURE
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Beschreibung
GERALD SUMMERS (BRITISH 1899-1967) FOR THE MAKERS OF SIMPLE FURNITURE
SET OF FIVE MODULAR BOOK UNITS, CIRCA 1934
oak (5)
each 101.5cm high, 50.5cm wide, 22.5cm deep (39 ¾in high, 20in wide, 9in deep)
Estate of Jessie BallSotheby's, London The Best of British - Design from the 19th and 20th Centuries - Paul Reeves: The Auction, 20 March 2008, Lot 126
Literature: Deese, M. ‘Gerald Summers and Makers of Simple Furniture’, Journal of Design History, vol. 5, no. 3, 1992, p.190 (catalogue page from late 1934 illustrated showing the book units)Deese, M. Gerald Summers & Marjorie Butcher, Makers of Simple Furniture 1931-1940, Berlin, 2024, pp. 67-69, 175, 300These book units were registered as design No. 796529 and described as ‘A simple and flexible system of providing accommodation for books, stores and articles of display’. They were available in Empire Whitewood polished white, black, oak, mahogany or walnut colour and retailed at £1 10 per unit or in birch white polished retailing at £3 30 per unit.Order lists in the firm’s archive show that by 1937 the units were available in London department stores - Barkers, Harrods, John Lewis, and Whiteley’s; and at the furnishers Heal’s and Bowmans (in addition to Makers of Simple Furniture’s own showroom).Martha Deese in her 2024 book notes that Gerald and his wife Marjorie organized a clever marketing campaign for the units that targeted members of the Left Book Club (p. 175):"In early or mid-1936, they embarked on a direct mail campaign targeted at a specific group of potential customers: members of the Left Book Club (L.B.C.). Conceived in January 1936, the L.B.C. vowed “to help in the terribly urgent struggle for World Peace & a better economic order & against Fascism, by giving (to all who are determined to play their part) such knowledge as will immensely increase their efficiency.” The club’s first advertisement for members, in February 1936, led to the enrollment of over six thousand people, each of whom as a condition of membership agreed to purchase every month, for a minimum of six months, a book chosen by the club’s leadership to enlighten and embolden its members. Whether or not Gerald and Marjorie belonged to the L.B.C., they recognized that a fast-growing group of forward-thinking individuals in possession of an ever-increasing number of books were ideal candidates for the book units. Within a few months of the club’s establishment, the Charlotte Street office posted custom packets to the club’s leaders. The contents consisted of a sales pitch (in the form of a letter), a spec sheet for the book units, and an order form cleverly encased in a red-orange folder that mimicked the distinctive orange, cloth-bound covers of the L.B.C.’s publications. “May we interest you in our Book Units for your L.B.C. and other books?” the letter queried. “As they are the most flexible units in existence we think they will have a special appeal for you.” The advantages of the units over other shelving systems — the adaptable form, the different shelf heights, and the capacity of sixty books per unit — took up the body of the letter. The sales pitch concluded with an appeal to both the purse and the psyche. “Built-in bookshelves are always a false economy; you cannot take them with you when you move. And, it is pleasant to re-arrange your room sometimes and enjoy the fresh surroundings.”Lyon & Turnbull wishes to thank Martha Deese for her assistance with cataloguing this lot.
SET OF FIVE MODULAR BOOK UNITS, CIRCA 1934
oak (5)
each 101.5cm high, 50.5cm wide, 22.5cm deep (39 ¾in high, 20in wide, 9in deep)
Estate of Jessie BallSotheby's, London The Best of British - Design from the 19th and 20th Centuries - Paul Reeves: The Auction, 20 March 2008, Lot 126
Literature: Deese, M. ‘Gerald Summers and Makers of Simple Furniture’, Journal of Design History, vol. 5, no. 3, 1992, p.190 (catalogue page from late 1934 illustrated showing the book units)Deese, M. Gerald Summers & Marjorie Butcher, Makers of Simple Furniture 1931-1940, Berlin, 2024, pp. 67-69, 175, 300These book units were registered as design No. 796529 and described as ‘A simple and flexible system of providing accommodation for books, stores and articles of display’. They were available in Empire Whitewood polished white, black, oak, mahogany or walnut colour and retailed at £1 10 per unit or in birch white polished retailing at £3 30 per unit.Order lists in the firm’s archive show that by 1937 the units were available in London department stores - Barkers, Harrods, John Lewis, and Whiteley’s; and at the furnishers Heal’s and Bowmans (in addition to Makers of Simple Furniture’s own showroom).Martha Deese in her 2024 book notes that Gerald and his wife Marjorie organized a clever marketing campaign for the units that targeted members of the Left Book Club (p. 175):"In early or mid-1936, they embarked on a direct mail campaign targeted at a specific group of potential customers: members of the Left Book Club (L.B.C.). Conceived in January 1936, the L.B.C. vowed “to help in the terribly urgent struggle for World Peace & a better economic order & against Fascism, by giving (to all who are determined to play their part) such knowledge as will immensely increase their efficiency.” The club’s first advertisement for members, in February 1936, led to the enrollment of over six thousand people, each of whom as a condition of membership agreed to purchase every month, for a minimum of six months, a book chosen by the club’s leadership to enlighten and embolden its members. Whether or not Gerald and Marjorie belonged to the L.B.C., they recognized that a fast-growing group of forward-thinking individuals in possession of an ever-increasing number of books were ideal candidates for the book units. Within a few months of the club’s establishment, the Charlotte Street office posted custom packets to the club’s leaders. The contents consisted of a sales pitch (in the form of a letter), a spec sheet for the book units, and an order form cleverly encased in a red-orange folder that mimicked the distinctive orange, cloth-bound covers of the L.B.C.’s publications. “May we interest you in our Book Units for your L.B.C. and other books?” the letter queried. “As they are the most flexible units in existence we think they will have a special appeal for you.” The advantages of the units over other shelving systems — the adaptable form, the different shelf heights, and the capacity of sixty books per unit — took up the body of the letter. The sales pitch concluded with an appeal to both the purse and the psyche. “Built-in bookshelves are always a false economy; you cannot take them with you when you move. And, it is pleasant to re-arrange your room sometimes and enjoy the fresh surroundings.”Lyon & Turnbull wishes to thank Martha Deese for her assistance with cataloguing this lot.
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GERALD SUMMERS (BRITISH 1899-1967) FOR THE MAKERS OF SIMPLE FURNITURE
SET OF FIVE MODULAR BOOK UNITS, CIRCA 1934
oak (5)
each 101.5cm high, 50.5cm wide, 22.5cm deep (39 ¾in high, 20in wide, 9in deep)
Estate of Jessie BallSotheby's, London The Best of British - Design from the 19th and 20th Centuries - Paul Reeves: The Auction, 20 March 2008, Lot 126
Literature: Deese, M. ‘Gerald Summers and Makers of Simple Furniture’, Journal of Design History, vol. 5, no. 3, 1992, p.190 (catalogue page from late 1934 illustrated showing the book units)Deese, M. Gerald Summers & Marjorie Butcher, Makers of Simple Furniture 1931-1940, Berlin, 2024, pp. 67-69, 175, 300These book units were registered as design No. 796529 and described as ‘A simple and flexible system of providing accommodation for books, stores and articles of display’. They were available in Empire Whitewood polished white, black, oak, mahogany or walnut colour and retailed at £1 10 per unit or in birch white polished retailing at £3 30 per unit.Order lists in the firm’s archive show that by 1937 the units were available in London department stores - Barkers, Harrods, John Lewis, and Whiteley’s; and at the furnishers Heal’s and Bowmans (in addition to Makers of Simple Furniture’s own showroom).Martha Deese in her 2024 book notes that Gerald and his wife Marjorie organized a clever marketing campaign for the units that targeted members of the Left Book Club (p. 175):"In early or mid-1936, they embarked on a direct mail campaign targeted at a specific group of potential customers: members of the Left Book Club (L.B.C.). Conceived in January 1936, the L.B.C. vowed “to help in the terribly urgent struggle for World Peace & a better economic order & against Fascism, by giving (to all who are determined to play their part) such knowledge as will immensely increase their efficiency.” The club’s first advertisement for members, in February 1936, led to the enrollment of over six thousand people, each of whom as a condition of membership agreed to purchase every month, for a minimum of six months, a book chosen by the club’s leadership to enlighten and embolden its members. Whether or not Gerald and Marjorie belonged to the L.B.C., they recognized that a fast-growing group of forward-thinking individuals in possession of an ever-increasing number of books were ideal candidates for the book units. Within a few months of the club’s establishment, the Charlotte Street office posted custom packets to the club’s leaders. The contents consisted of a sales pitch (in the form of a letter), a spec sheet for the book units, and an order form cleverly encased in a red-orange folder that mimicked the distinctive orange, cloth-bound covers of the L.B.C.’s publications. “May we interest you in our Book Units for your L.B.C. and other books?” the letter queried. “As they are the most flexible units in existence we think they will have a special appeal for you.” The advantages of the units over other shelving systems — the adaptable form, the different shelf heights, and the capacity of sixty books per unit — took up the body of the letter. The sales pitch concluded with an appeal to both the purse and the psyche. “Built-in bookshelves are always a false economy; you cannot take them with you when you move. And, it is pleasant to re-arrange your room sometimes and enjoy the fresh surroundings.”Lyon & Turnbull wishes to thank Martha Deese for her assistance with cataloguing this lot.
SET OF FIVE MODULAR BOOK UNITS, CIRCA 1934
oak (5)
each 101.5cm high, 50.5cm wide, 22.5cm deep (39 ¾in high, 20in wide, 9in deep)
Estate of Jessie BallSotheby's, London The Best of British - Design from the 19th and 20th Centuries - Paul Reeves: The Auction, 20 March 2008, Lot 126
Literature: Deese, M. ‘Gerald Summers and Makers of Simple Furniture’, Journal of Design History, vol. 5, no. 3, 1992, p.190 (catalogue page from late 1934 illustrated showing the book units)Deese, M. Gerald Summers & Marjorie Butcher, Makers of Simple Furniture 1931-1940, Berlin, 2024, pp. 67-69, 175, 300These book units were registered as design No. 796529 and described as ‘A simple and flexible system of providing accommodation for books, stores and articles of display’. They were available in Empire Whitewood polished white, black, oak, mahogany or walnut colour and retailed at £1 10 per unit or in birch white polished retailing at £3 30 per unit.Order lists in the firm’s archive show that by 1937 the units were available in London department stores - Barkers, Harrods, John Lewis, and Whiteley’s; and at the furnishers Heal’s and Bowmans (in addition to Makers of Simple Furniture’s own showroom).Martha Deese in her 2024 book notes that Gerald and his wife Marjorie organized a clever marketing campaign for the units that targeted members of the Left Book Club (p. 175):"In early or mid-1936, they embarked on a direct mail campaign targeted at a specific group of potential customers: members of the Left Book Club (L.B.C.). Conceived in January 1936, the L.B.C. vowed “to help in the terribly urgent struggle for World Peace & a better economic order & against Fascism, by giving (to all who are determined to play their part) such knowledge as will immensely increase their efficiency.” The club’s first advertisement for members, in February 1936, led to the enrollment of over six thousand people, each of whom as a condition of membership agreed to purchase every month, for a minimum of six months, a book chosen by the club’s leadership to enlighten and embolden its members. Whether or not Gerald and Marjorie belonged to the L.B.C., they recognized that a fast-growing group of forward-thinking individuals in possession of an ever-increasing number of books were ideal candidates for the book units. Within a few months of the club’s establishment, the Charlotte Street office posted custom packets to the club’s leaders. The contents consisted of a sales pitch (in the form of a letter), a spec sheet for the book units, and an order form cleverly encased in a red-orange folder that mimicked the distinctive orange, cloth-bound covers of the L.B.C.’s publications. “May we interest you in our Book Units for your L.B.C. and other books?” the letter queried. “As they are the most flexible units in existence we think they will have a special appeal for you.” The advantages of the units over other shelving systems — the adaptable form, the different shelf heights, and the capacity of sixty books per unit — took up the body of the letter. The sales pitch concluded with an appeal to both the purse and the psyche. “Built-in bookshelves are always a false economy; you cannot take them with you when you move. And, it is pleasant to re-arrange your room sometimes and enjoy the fresh surroundings.”Lyon & Turnbull wishes to thank Martha Deese for her assistance with cataloguing this lot.
Makers & Creators: Selected Works from The Hugo Burge Collection
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EH1 3RR
United Kingdom
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Wichtige Informationen
BUYER'S PREMIUM
The buyer shall pay the hammer price together with a premium, at the following rate, thereon.
26% up to £20,000
25% from £20,001 to £500,000
20% thereafter
VAT will be charged on the premium at the rate imposed by law (see our Conditions of Sale at the back of this catalogue).
ADDITIONAL VAT
† VAT at the standard rate payable on the hammer price
‡ Reduced rate of 5% import VAT payable on the hammer price
[Ω] Standard rate of import VAT on the hammer price
Lots affixed with ‡ or [Ω] symbols may be subject to further regulations upon export /import, please see Conditions of Sale for Buyers Section D.2.
No VAT is payable on the hammer price or premium for books bought at auction
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ARTIST’S RESALE ROYALTY (DROIT DE SUITE)
§ indicates works which may be subject to the Droit de Suite or Artist’s Resale Right, which took effect in the United Kingdom on 14th February 2006. We are required to collect a royalty payment for all qualifying works of art. Under new legislation which came into effect on 1st January 2012 this applies to living artists and artists who have died in the last 70 years. This royalty will be charged to the Buyer on the Hammer Price and in addition to the Buyer’s Premium. It will not apply to works where the Hammer Price is less than £1,000. The charge for works of art sold at and above £1,000 and below £50,000 is 4%. For items selling above £50,000, charges are calculated on a sliding scale. All royalty charges are paid to the Design and Artists Copyright Society (‘DACS’) and no handling costs or additional fees are retained by the Auctioneer. Resale royalties are not subject to VAT.
More information on Droit de Suite is available at www.dacs.org.uk
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These Conditions of Sale and the Saleroom Notices as well as specific Catalogue terms, set out the terms on which we offer the Lots listed in this Catalogue for sale. By registering to bid and/or by bidding at auction You agree to these terms, we recommend that You read them carefully before doing so. You will find a list of definitions and a glossary at the end providing explanations for the meanings of the words and expressions used.
Special terms may be used in Catalogue descriptions of particular classes of items (Books, Jewellery, Paintings, Guns, Firearms, etc.) in which case the descriptions must be interpreted in accordance with any glossary appearing in the Catalogue. These notices and terms will also form part of our terms and conditions of sales.
In these Conditions the words “Us”, “Our”, “We” etc. refers to Lyon & Turnbull Ltd, the singular includes the plural and vice versa as appropriate. “You”, “Your” means the Buyer.
Lyon & Turnbull Ltd. acts as agent for the Seller. On occasion where Lyon & Turnbull Ltd. own a lot in part or full the property will be identified in the catalogue with the symbol (
