Evaluating Some Stickley Chairs By Helaine Fendelman and Joe Rosson
Scripps Howard News Service
Dear Helaine and Joe: About 30 years ago I purchased this wicker armchair and a similar armchair from an elderly neighbor. When I recently had the chair cushions recovered I found a "Stickley Bros." label. What is the value of these chairs? - K. H.
Dear K. H.: The name "Stickley" currently is very important in the world of antiques and collecting, and saying that a particular piece is a "Stickley" can conjure up images of great desirability on today's antiques market.
Unfortunately, not all Stickley furniture was created equal.
To understand Stickley furniture, it is important to know that there were five brothers in the family. The oldest was Gustav, whose work is considered to be the most important, and then there was Leopold, Charles, Albert and John George.
All five were in the furniture-making business, and up until Gustav took a trip to England in 1898, they made walnut furniture typical of the day and even made some pieces in the Chippendale style.
While Gustav was in England in 1898 he was introduced to the English Art and Crafts style that was typified by the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh and C.F.A. Vousey.
On returning to the United States, Gustav began to develop the no-nonsense style that collectors often refer to as either "Mission" or "American Arts and Crafts." Stickley founded his Craftsman Workshop in Eastwood, N.Y., and his brothers worked in his style in various factories that they founded.
"Stickley Brothers" originally consisted of Albert, Charles and John George and was founded in Binghamton, N.Y. Albert and John George subsequently moved the company to Grand Rapids, Mich. Later, John George left the Grand Rapids operation and opened L. and J.G. Stickley in Fayetteville, N.Y., with brother Leopold.
Both Gustav at his Craftsman Workshop and his siblings at Stickley Brothers made wicker furniture, and both companies totally rejected the ornate style of wicker that was so popular during the Victorian era. The Stickleys abandoned the lavish curlicues and intricate scrollwork that were the hallmark of Victorian wicker and in its place created pieces that used straight lines and practical forms that echoed the other types of American Arts and Crafts furniture.
K.H.'s two chairs were made in the Stickley Brothers factory in Grand Rapids circa 1920, and they are a typical example of the wicker furniture made by this company. Stickley Brothers wicker is not widely known and it does not command the prices paid for the Stickley's oak pieces in the Arts and Crafts style.
For insurance replacement purposes, these two wicker chairs should be valued at between $500 and $600 for both.
(Helaine Fendelman is feature editor at Country Living magazine and Joe Rosson writes about antiques at The Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee. Questions can by mailed to them at PO Box 12208, Knoxville, TN 37912-0208.)
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