Home Photo Gallery Classroom Documents The Shaker Arts and Crafts Gordon M. Smith The search for a native American tradition in the arts and crafts is fraught with pitfalls. On the verge of labeling an object definitely American and of definitely American inspiration, we go deeper into its background and discover it to be merely an outgrowth of some earlier European form, changed, it is true, by adaptations to the American idiom, by different materials, by different needs, by a different state of mind. This is illustrated vividly by the art productions of New England, so closely linked throughout much of their history with those of old England. As long as the ships traveled between Europe ports and America, bringing materials, patterns, books, even craftsmen, we were constantly in contact with the more sophisticated art of Europe, and although we did not always slavishly imitate, we were rarely entirely free from its influence. Consequently, when the Index of American Design was first established to make and preserve a record of our native arts and crafts, it was essential to choose among its first endeavors an art which we could call our own without reservations. The Shakers were chosen because they came closest to this ideal. They represent in their art and in their lives a good many of the qualities which we have come to associate with our definition of Americanism-simplicity, economy, reliability, durability, solid good sense, and, finally, complete freedom from frills. Quite as important for the purposes of the Index was the fact that the very unity and single-mindedness of the entire artistic expression of the Shakers made it possible to study their art as an entity. Few if any of the standard reference works on American decorative arts have considered the Shakers seriously, either because they do not fit into the chosen scheme, or because they were considered a quaint and folksy offshoot of an art capable of producing Philadelphia Chippendale furniture or the Federal mansions of Salem. The recent interest in modern architecture and in functionalism, in plain surfaces and in simplicity, has given the study of the Shaker arts an impetus, and those who once considered it beneath their notice are beginning to claim it proudly as one of their most, if not their most, individual native art traditions. That very interest in so-called primitive art, the growing desire to have an art tradition to call their own, the gradual turning away from Europe as the source of everything of artistic value, makes the Index study of the Shakers especially timely and especially important. Perhaps the most immediate reason for choosing the Shakers is the fact that Shaker colonies are gradually disappearing; they have dwindled to five from the original eighteen, and only a small part of their work remains. The Shaker Society, or United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, was established in this country by Mother Ann Lee and eight followers, who came to this country from Manchester, England, in 1774. Mother Ann's oft-quoted "Hearts to God and Hands to Work" perhaps expresses best the purposes and ideals of the Shakers. Not only their hearts but their property were consecrated to God. They lived apart in isolated communities, separated themselves from the world with its evil vanity, and pursued their agricultural and industrial pursuits methodically and efficiently. There is practically no phase of the Shakers' philosophy that is not illustrated vividly by the products of their hands. One would scarcely need the books or Shaker manifestos in order to discern their ideals and principles, for these are preserved in the architecture, the minor arts, the inventions. When one comes upon a typical Shaker village, one cannot help but be impressed by the system of planning, the orderliness, the neatness and efficiency of the whole, and still more by the air of calm distinction and dignity. The buildings are simple,without useless ornamentation, excellently proportioned, anti adapted for a purpose. The meetinghouse at New Lebanon, New York, built in 1824, with its unusual elliptical barrel-vaulted roof and separate hooded doorways for brethren, sisters, and Ministry, is one of the most beautiful surviving examples of Shaker architecture. Another distinguished Shaker building is the round barn at Hancock, Massachusetts, with its severe simplicity, its fine proportions, graceful, sweeping lines, and ingenious construction. The Index has recorded a number of the extant examples of Shaker buildings in interior and exterior views, as well as detailed studies of interesting architectural features. These should provide a definite and worthwhile contribution to the study of American architecture. Interiors are even more simple than exteriors: the walls are plain, of whitewashed plaster or painted in the famous Shaker blue. Built for utility, but providing a pleasing accent and tying the room together in an indestructible unity, are the familiar pegboards found in every Shaker room. built-in drawers and cupboards are another important feature of the interiors. Solely utilitarian in purpose, they lend accents to the rooms and break up the expanses of plain wall surface. I here are drawers and cupboards by the hundred, lining entire walls of storerooms, and indicating that there was a place for everything, and that neatness and order were preeminent. Furniture was entirely in keeping with the interiors; one can scarcely imagine a Shaker room without Shaker furniture or vice versa. The same ideals of simplicity and utility persist. Furniture was constructed for strength and durability. An object was made to serve a purpose, a chair to sit on, so why elaborate graceful curving legs or backs in the shapes of lyres or anytt1ing of the sort? They were very practical about it all, and because utility and simplicity were their chief concerns, they succeeded admirably in creating something aesthetically significant. The Index of American Design has recorded in watercolor plates practically every type of Shaker furniture that survives today. A study of these indicates the many types, the pieces adapted to every need, the ingenious devices employed. Most important and certainly the most familiar to the layman are the Shaker chairs, which were sold widely outside the colonies. Some of these were equipped with an unusual ball and socket device at the termination of the rear posts whereby it was possible to tilt the chair without slipping. Seats were covered with multicolored textiles woven by the sisters. The Index has recorded a number of the many varieties of tables-the long trestle type for dining; those used for ironing and sewing, the tailoress's counter, used for cutting, piecing, and sewing of garments; the drafting table with slanting top; the numerous drop-leaf tables. There are the chests of drawers, often with cupboards above, with never a deviation from the straight front and knobs of the simplest type. Textiles also have been studied by the Index, these reproduced with the most meticulous accuracy to show clearly colors, materials, and weaves. For the cloth, flax and wool were raised in the comn1unities, cotton imported from the South. The sisters spun the yarn, dyed it, and wove and tailored the cloth for their own garments, for rugs, for the tapes and braids used in chair seats, for blankets, and for tow or garden sheets for the gathering of herbs, for chair mats, spreads, and toweling. The Index has recorded characteristic costumes and costume accessories, the kerchiefs, caps and bonnets, aprons, cloaks, and capes of the sisters, the fur and wool hats, the stocks, dress and everyday suits, and the knitted mittens of the brethren, thus forming a rather complete picture of Shaker dress. Although the Index has quite naturally not been able to record every invention and every tool in use in the Shaker colonies, photographs have been taken of outstanding examples. They lead to the conclusion that in this branch of their work as in every other their hands and hearts were in it, and their minds were working overtime to make as perfect as possible their small civilization.
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