Chippendale, Thomas: drawing of a combined desk and bookcase
Drawing of a combined desk and bookcase, black ink and gray wash by Thomas Chippendale, 1753; in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.
Thomas Chippendale
British cabinetmaker
Thomas Chippendale (baptized June 5, 1718, Otley, Yorkshire, England—buried November 13, 1779, London) was one of the leading cabinetmakers of 18th-century England and one of the most perplexing figures in the history of furniture. His name is synonymous with the Anglicized Rococo style. Nothing is known of Chippendale’s early life until his marriage to Catherine Redshaw in London in 1748. In 1753 he moved to St. Martin’s Lane, where he maintained his showrooms, workshops, and...