Archive for November, 2011

NYC MoMA visit – Greene & Greene Furniture and Japanese Tsubas

On the afternoon of November 21, 2011 we visited The Metropolitan Mueseum of Art in New York, one of the world’s great museums.  They have a small collection of Blacker House furniture on display: an armchair, a library table, and a chandelier.  Shown below are a few snapshots we took of the pieces.  Hopefully the closeups will be of interest to readers, and maybe even some use to fellow furnituremakers. 

Most Greene and Greene afficionados are aware that Japanese tsubas (sword guards) were very influential in the Greene brothers’ work.  Near the museum’s G&G collection, in the Armor and Weapons section, was a wonderful display of tsubas.  Snapshots of most of them are below.  Note the intricate inlay and texturing on some of them. 

Click on a picture to download a full-size image.   These snapshots were taken with Barry’s iPhone camera, so please forgive any marginal quality pictures. 

Barry by the Greene & Greeene display. These are the first examples that he's seen "in person"!