Dressing table model shown with original dressing table chair (before reupholstery). Photography by Erin Geidman

Transcript

Hello, my name is Lindsay Williams and I am a Visitor Services Assistant at the museum. I will be reading the Models: Getting it Right section in Unlocking an Art Deco Bedroom by Joseph Urban.

Curator Amy Dehan and Consultant R. Mark Adams worked closely with master furniture maker Terry Moore and master upholsterer Bruno Paulin Lopez to develop scaled models of the armchair, dressing table, and one occasional table and hassock. Prior to their work on the Wormser Bedroom reconstruction, each had worked on other restoration projects from the period, developing a keen sense of the lines, materials, and techniques used by Urban’s contemporaries. Their production models of the Urban forms, constructed of Styrofoam, muslin, and plywood, were transported to the museum and checked against existing works and related design sketches for correct scale and line. Based on hours of review and discussion between the curator, conservators, and artisans, the models were further refined in preparation for creating the final objects.

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