William Burges in Bedford
The Cecil Higgins Gallery in Bedford has a Gothic Room with
painted furniture by William Burges. This is the Narcissus washstand. It gets
its name from the three paintings at the top. These show the Greek legend of
Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection. After washing the basin
swivels round to empty the water into a bucket behind the doors. The Victoria
and Albert Museum has a similar swivel washstand also by Burges.
.
Burges's ideas of medieval furniture were based on two medieval cupboards in France illustrated by the French architect, Viollet-le-Duc in the 1840s. (Viollet-le-Duc also restored Notre Dame and the Sainte Chapelle in Paris. In the latter he decorated the walls with brightly coloured statues and patterns.) In 1867 Burges visited the French castle of Pierrefonds in NE France, which Viollet-le-Duc was restoring for the French Emperor Napoleon III. Burges used the same rich colours as the Frenchman, and said, 'We all cribbed from Viollet-le-Duc.'
Photo
Copyright Cecil Higgins Gallery
This is a decanter designed by Burges. It is typical of the metalwork which he designed for churches and for domestic use. The animal forms used for the handle and the spout are based on medieval aquamaniles used to pour out the water used to wash the hands of the priest at Mass. Burges had helped to draw the illustrations of medieval metalwork in M. D. Wyatt's book Metalwork and its Artistic Design, published in 1852.
A similar Burges decanter can be seen at the V&A
Photo Copyright Cecil Higgins Gallery