20th century, the set consisting of (2) arm chairs and (10) side chairs, Asian hardwood with shaped crest rail and curving splat, with carved skirt, legs with stretcher base, (10) chairs with inset woven seats and (2) chairs with inset plank seats. Each chair with a zebra print knobby wood cushion .Family history is that the chairs were purchased by Mrs. Merrill from the shop of the late Charlotte Horstmann, a renown Asian art dealer whose business also included creating fine furniture in the early Chinese forms. Arm chairs 42 x 23 x 18 in.; Side chairs: 42 x 19 x 16.5 in.

Estate of the Late Evangeline Brewster Johnson Merrill (1897-1990) and by descent.

Daughter of Johnson and Johnson Pharmaceutical founder, Robert Wood Johnson, Evangeline Brewster Johnson Merrill was a prominent supporter of the arts at a very early point in her life. In 1943, she was made a Fellow in Perpetuity of the Metropolitan Museum of Art; throughout her life she was a patron of several museums, including the Peabody Museum of Yale University. Her philosophy and passion for art is well defined in a letter to a family member dated January 20, 1970, in which she seeks support for The Norton Gallery, "Art, together with Science, constitutes the highest form of human evolution, and I think you will agree that their preservation and development become a most important civic responsibility of us all. Museums preserve the inspired art of the past and the challenging art of the present in order to stimulate and enlarge our culture pattern." Evangeline was particularly interested in promoting contemporary artists, encountering many throughout her travels and work with the United Nations. She had a particular interest in Middle Eastern and Continental artists, as illustrated in the collection offered here. She lived with her collection, sharing it with others while entertaining at her home. Numerous works from her collection, by such important artists as Klee and Kandinsky, are in the collections of MOMA and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Some separation and repairs; restoration to arm chairs.

$1,000 - 2,000