London
The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), London, is due to unveil a gallery focusing on the materials and techniques used by furniture makers from the 15th century to the present day. Among the 200 examples of furniture that have been lacquered, veneered, upholstered, gilded, moulded or carved will be a bookcase covered in mother-of-pearl, probably made in Mexico (1780-1820), and a Gothic oak cradle designed by Richard Norman Shaw, around 1861 (right). Nick Humphrey, the co-curator of the Dr Susan Weber Gallery, says one aim is to reveal things that experts are keen to inspect: the backs and bottoms of objects. The gallery, which opens on 1 December and has been designed by Nord Architecture, includes pieces by Thomas Chippendale, Michael Thonet and Eileen Gray, among others.
Originally appeared in The Art Newspaper as 'The V&A rocks its Gothic cradle'