With the assistance of a Private Donor, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the Art Fund, Lakeland Arts has acquired an important piece of Arts & Crafts furniture designed by Blackwell’s architect Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott.
This exceptional example of an Arts & Crafts secretaire was designed by the architect Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott (1865-1945) at the turn of the 20th century and had been on loan to Lakeland Arts for display at Blackwell – the Arts & Crafts house since 2011. In 2019, due to unforeseen circumstances, the secretaire became at significant risk of moving into private ownership and being removed not just from Blackwell, but from public display entirely. Fortunately, thanks to the generous support of a Private Donor, the National Heritage Memorial Fund, and the Art Fund, Lakeland Arts was able to acquire this important piece of Arts & Crafts history, to keep it on permanent display in the only property designed by Baillie Scott that is open to the public.
The newly acquired secretaire dates from around the same time that Baillie Scott completed Blackwell as a holiday home for the Manchester-based Holt family in 1901. It demonstrates the principal facets of an Arts & Crafts ethos through its outstanding craftspersonship, unity of form and function, and designs taken from nature. A similar style of secretaire was produced by Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868-1928) in 1905, suggesting Baillie Scott may have influenced his Scottish contemporary, and demonstrates Baillie Scott’s status as a leading designer of the Arts & Crafts Movement.
This secretaire is particularly significant as it is the only known example of its design printed in Baillie Scott’s The Pyghtle Works catalogue, which features sketched designs and colour plates of furniture made by skilled workmen under the direction of Baillie Scott. The Pyghtle Works was a furniture manufacturing company based in Bedford owned by Baillie Scott’s friend, the cabinet maker John Parish White (c.1855-c.1917). Baillie Scott partnered with White from the late 1890s with the aim to reach beyond private commissions and make Arts & Crafts furniture more accessible to a broad audience. The extent of Baillie Scott’s collaboration with White is indicated by the catalogue of over 100 designs which shows the architect’s dependence on this manufacturer to execute a wide range of Arts & Crafts furniture. The secretaire exists as evidence of The Pyghtle Works’ ability to meet Baillie Scott’s exacting standards and it is believed to be the piece of furniture pictured in the original catalogue.
There are only a few pieces of furniture featured in The Pyghtle Works catalogue represented in public collections today. Often only one piece of each design was made which makes this acquisition especially important. In addition, the exquisite inlay in pewter, wood and ivory that features on this secretaire can also be seen in furniture manufactured by The Pyghtle Works for a house in Uzwil, Switzerland, which was designed by Baillie Scott for a Swiss industrialist between 1907 and 1911. This comparison affirms Baillie Scott’s identity as one of the first truly international architects and designers and shows the reach of Baillie Scott’s reputation.
When Lakeland Arts acquired Blackwell in 1999 it did not contain any original Arts & Crafts furnishings. Today, 120 years since Blackwell’s completion, Lakeland Arts is proud to care for such an important piece of Arts & Crafts history in a small but significant collection of Baillie Scott’s furniture. The secretaire is enhanced by its fitting display in our Arts & Crafts bedroom, and helps to deepen our understanding of Baillie Scott as one of the most significant designers and architects of his time.
Photographed by www.photographybyward.co.uk
