Banjo Chair

Unidentified, Banjo Chair, ca. 1875, turned, inlaid, painted, stained, and varnished wood, 41 x 15 ³⁄₈ x 20 ⁵⁄₈ in. (104.2 x 39.1 x 52.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson, 1986.65.73

Free to use

Artwork Details

Title: Banjo Chair
Artist: Unidentified
Date: ca. 1875
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
/
Luce Foundation Center
/
3rd Floor
/
25A
Dimensions: 41 x 15 ³⁄₈ x 20 ⁵⁄₈ in. (104.2 x 39.1 x 52.4 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr. and museum purchase made possible by Ralph Cross Johnson
Mediums: wood
Mediums Description: turned, inlaid, painted, stained, and varnished wood
Classifications: Decorative Arts
Furniture
Subjects: Object — musical instrument — banjo
Object Number: 1986.65.73
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1986.65.73

Artwork Description

An unknown artist probably made this piece for a minstrel show during the late nineteenth century. Minstrel shows were hugely popular, and the instruments, especially the banjo, often appeared as decorative furniture, clocks, and wall hangings. The artist created Banjo Chair by fixing brackets around the seat, carving the seat back to resemble a peghead, and inlaying thin strips of wood to represent the strings. (Lynda Hartigan, Made with Passion, 1990)