Bradford, VT. Copeland Furniture, the Vermont manufacturer of transitional and contemporary hardwood furniture has announced that they are introducing chairs designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1908, but never built. Copeland holds the exclusive license from Wright’s heirs, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, to build the furniture designs of America’s preeminent architect.
The Boynton Dining Chairs were designed for the E. E. Boynton House in Rochester, New York. Mr. Boynton wanted comfortable seating for his guests so Wright designed a chair back with a compound curve in it that would support a person’s shoulders and give lumbar support for the lower back. Lacking the technology to actually create the compound curved panel, the design was relegated to Wright’s archives for the last 100 years.
Copeland, working with Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer and Oskar Muñoz of the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives, has resurrected the design and executed this exceptionally comfortable chair, never actually built while Wright was alive. The Boynton Dining Chair is beautiful as well as comfortable—a 100-year-old idea brought to fruition.
Tim Copeland said: ”Many people have suggested that Mr. Wright never designed a comfortable chair, particularly in his Prairie years. Like so much of the conventional wisdom about Frank Lloyd Wright, this one is wrong as well.”
Also new at Market—The Little House Desk created from a preliminary study by Mr. Wright. This piece is hardly small; it measures 80”x40”, affording plenty of work and display space. The name comes from the Little Family. Wright designed a home for the Francis W. Little family on Lake Minnetonka in Wayzata, Minnesota, just west of Minneapolis.
In addition to these new pieces, Copeland is now in full production on recent introductions including the Ingalls bed, Dana-Thomas Recliner, Dana-Thomas Occasional Chair, and the Heurtley Spindle Back Chair.
About Copeland Furniture
Copeland Furniture, founded in 1974 by Tim Copeland, started as a one-man operation in a garage in rural Vermont. Copeland Furniture is now a state-of-the art manufacturing facility in Bradford, VT, producing “natural hardwood furniture from Vermont”. The company’s line includes adult bedroom, home office, full dining, and occasional furniture. Copeland Furniture enjoys national distribution through quality furniture retailers.
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If you would like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with Tim Copeland, please call 802-222-9282 x105 or email tim@tcopeland.com.
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Frank Lloyd Wright® Furniture by Copeland—FAQ’s
Q: Who was Frank Lloyd Wright?
A: America’s preeminent architect, Frank Lloyd Wright’s career spanned 70 years and produced 600 residential designs—including signature houses like his own Taliesin and Taliesin West, the Dana-Thomas House, the Coonley House, the Robie House, and Fallingwater—and over 1,000 furniture designs. He is also known for landmark commercial and public buildings like the Guggenheim Museum, Imperial Hotel (Tokyo), and the Johnson Wax Administration Building.
Q: What were his Prairie Style designs?
A: Frank Lloyd Wright grew up in the Midwest and was profoundly influenced by the characteristics of the prairie. His Prairie Style designs for houses and furniture, created in the late 1800s and early 1900s, are artistic abstractions of that environment. Strong horizontal and vertical lines imitate the long horizon and crops and trees shooting up from the plain.
Wright’s Prairie Houses often include imposing rooflines and cantilevers that extend well beyond exterior walls. Windows are often vertical, rising from floor to ceiling. He used natural materials like wood and stone abundantly in an effort to unify the house with its surroundings. Innovations like attached garages, roof overhangs that shade windows, open living space, large fireplaces, integrated place and recreation space are all attributed to Frank Lloyd Wright.
Furniture pieces were meant to enhance the house by bringing nature indoors. Wright’s Prairie Style elements were all applied to his furniture pieces though he took care to tune them to the lifestyle of particular clients. Built of natural woods, furniture pieces were artistic, functional, and lasting.
Q: How are the designs of Frank Lloyd Wright licensed and controlled?
A: The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation owns and licenses all the designs, drawings, writing, and personal properties. Founded by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1940, the Foundation’s first mission was to perpetuate The Taliesin Fellowship that he had created in 1932.
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation continues as a non-profit organization dedicated to conserving the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and advancing the principles of organic architecture. It presides over Frank Lloyd Wrights’ extensive archives.
Q: Why did the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation choose Copeland Furniture as the exclusive licensee of Wright’s furniture designs?
A: The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation is dedicated to ensuring the authenticity of furniture pieces that use his designs and preserve his legacy. As such they sought a manufacturer with a reputation for quality and value. Further, the Foundation was looking for a licensee that would make Frank Lloyd Wright an important part of its business—creating collections rather than individual accent pieces and offering price points that were attractive to the fine furniture market.
In Copeland they found a partner that was eager to help them in those missions. Copeland Furniture has been crafting fine furniture from solid hardwood for over 30 years. Its craftspeople and workshops were perfectly positioned to assume the responsibility of the Frank Lloyd Wright license.
Q: What pieces are included in the Copeland collection?
A: Frank Lloyd Wright® Furniture by Copeland includes dining room, living room, and bedroom collections.
Dining Room: Copeland initial dining room offerings that include pieces that are based on original designs and measurements from the Dana-Thomas House in Springfield, Illinois.
Grand Extension Table
Extension Table
Large Arm Chair
Large Side Chair
Side Chair
Buffet
Living Room:
Dana-Thomas Plant Stand
Barrel Chair (Taliesin)
Robie Tabouret (Robie House)
Boynton Hall Table (Boynton House)
Oak Park Chair, Sofa, and Loveseat
Coonley End Table and Coffee Table
Occasional seating from Dana-Thomas House
Bedroom: All pieces are from original designs and measurements from the Meyer May and Ingalls Houses.
Beds—in Queen, King, and California King sizes
Nightstand
Dresser
Tall Chest
Armoire
Q: Are all pieces exact replicas of originals?
A: Some pieces are exact reproductions. With others Copeland has made slight adaptations to accommodate today’s lifestyles. Dana-Thomas Dining Chair backs have been angled slightly to increase comfort. The original Dana-Thomas Buffet was designed as a built-in piece; Copeland has made it free standing using exact measurements from the original. The Meyer May Bed, originally designed as a twin, now comes in Queen, King, and California King. The Meyer May Dresser has six 31”-wide drawers instead of the original three 60”-wide drawers that were meant to fit unfolded dresses.
In addition, Copeland has added new pieces based on Wright’s designs and actual companion pieces. The Coonley Coffee Table uses the design and millwork of the original Coonley End Table. The Oak Park Chair sets the design standard for the Oak Park Love Seat and Sofa. And the Meyer May Armoire is based on designs for the Dresser and Tall Chest.
Q: What assurance does the customer have that they are purchasing an authentic licensed piece of Frank Lloyd Wright® Furniture?
A: Each piece is engraved with the signature of Frank Lloyd Wright, the date of manufacture, and a serial number. Each serial number is entered into a permanent registry along with the details of manufacture.
Q: What is Copeland Furniture?
A: Copeland Furniture has been crafting high-quality solid hardwood furniture in its Bradford, Vermont, workshops for over 30 years. In 2006, Copeland Furniture acquired the exclusive rights to produce furniture based on the designs and drawings of Frank Lloyd Wright. Copeland is FSC certified, using only wood from the Northern Forest.
Q: What techniques does Copeland use to craft Frank Lloyd Wright® Furniture?
A: Each piece in the Frank Lloyd Wright® Furniture by Copeland Collection is accomplished through a combination of traditional and state-of-the-art techniques that announce and preserve the wood’s natural beauty while adding strength and durability to the overall piece.
Select Solid Hardwoods—Each piece of Frank Lloyd Wright® furniture starts with solid hardwood (cherry and White Oak) from the Northern Forest. The White Oak is quartersawn to reveal a ray-fleck in the grain. This time-consuming process is essential to obtaining distinctive wood characteristics and adds to the lumber’s stability.
Miter-Wrap Construction—In Wright’s day, craftsmen achieved the bold, sturdy tabletops of thick-cut hardwood with woodworking techniques that are all but forgotten. Copeland has revived miter-wrap construction for tabletops that present 2 inches or more at the edge—enabling the wood grain from the top to continue over ends and sides.
English Dovetails—Asymmetrical English dovetails form perfect, rigid fits for drawer and case pieces. Copeland makes these intricate cuts utilizing precise, computer-programmed machining.
Superior Drawer Construction—Drawers, with sides of solid ash and bottoms of birch plywood, are all fully finished. They are mounted on three ‘wood-on-wood’ slides—one on each side and at the center—and are fitted with Copeland Furniture’s drawer stops.
Durable, Hand-Wiped Finishes—Labor-intensive hand rubbing incorporates stain pigments and highlights grain definition in each piece. Copeland Furniture uses only catalyzed lacquer finishes that meet the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association’s high standards. They withstand tough stains and age beautifully.
The Frank Lloyd Wright Collection® is available in Parkton Oak, Madison Oak, Parkton Cherry, or Natural Cherry finishes.
Quality upholstery fabrics and leather—Copeland Furniture offers an extensive selection of fabrics and leathers or will use customer-supplied material.
Careful drying, machining, and preparation—Key to the longevity of any furniture piece is the preparation of wood pieces and science of joinery. Copeland Furniture combines perfectly planed surfaces, calibrated hydraulic pressure, and radio frequency-assisted curing to ensure consistently superior, enduring glue joints.
Q: What does it mean to be FSC Certified?
A: One of a few furniture-manufacturing companies certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), Copeland Furniture uses lumber that has been harvested in accordance with the standards set by that organization. Copeland is assured by its suppliers that wood has been legally harvested from forests which have high conservation values and are not threatened, where traditional or civil rights have not been violated, that do not contain genetically modified trees.
Q: When will Frank Lloyd Wright® Furniture by Copeland be available?
A: Copeland will start shipping furniture pieces to its dealers in October. The location of dealers can be found by contacting Copeland Furniture at fllw@copelandfurniture.com
Q: Where can I learn more?
A: Visit copelandfurniture.com or contact Tim Copeland, 802.222.9282 x105 or email tim@tcopeland.com
