A Rare Rococo-revival gilt wood Thomas Johnson mirror
A Rare Rococo-revival gilt wood mirror after a design by Thomas Johnson
English, Circa 1830.
This Thomas Johnson mirror was originally purchased from Walter Thornton Smith of Shottesbrooke Manor in Maidenhead Berkshire
Thornton Smith had an antique business in Soho, London during the 1920’s – 1950’s
He also went on to become the director of Fortnum and Mason’s
Based on one of Aesop’s fables, The Fox and the Grapes, in which a fox wishes to eat a bunch of grapes but cannot because they are too high for him to reach. The fox concludes (rationalizing the situation to himself) that, because he cannot reach them, the grapes must be sour. From this fable, the expression “sour grapes” has entered the English language.
Born in London in 1714 Thomas Johnson was a woodworker and carver particularly known for his whimsical mixture of rococo, Chinese, and rustic motifs. He was one of the most successful exponents of the rococo style in England, giving it a vitality not seen in the work of other designers.
In the 1750s he published several books of designs which were widely influential. These books included ‘Twelve Girandoles’ in 1755, ‘The Book of the Carver‘ in 1758 and monthly between 1755 and 1758, ‘One hundred and fifty New Designs’. from which our mirror is illustrated on plate 6 (see attached)
He also greatly influenced Ince and Mayhew’s book, ‘The Universal System of Household Furniture’, published in parts, 1759-63.
A notable feature of Johnson’s designs were the inclusion of figures of carved animals often based on Francis Barlow’s illustrations of Aesop’s Fables, first published in 1687.
A unique survival in raw unrestored condition.
Giltwood mirror, carved with scrolls, plants, rocks icicles, architectural motifs and a figure in the Chinoiserie … May be based upon designs by Thomas Johnson.
