Roycroft Art Metal (Rev and Expanded)
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Discover the rugged elegance of Roycroft metalwork through this essential, color-rich collector's guide.
Kevin McConnell’s revised volume serves as the definitive field guide for the growing community of Arts and Crafts enthusiasts. It meticulously catalogs the accessible yet exquisite art metal creations produced by Elbert Hubbard’s Roycroft community near Buffalo. With 179 vibrant illustrations, the text guides you through bowls, jewelry, and desk accessories, offering precise identification tips and current market values. Beyond mere lists, it delves into the company’s rich history and includes rare archival advertisements, providing a complete picture of this pivotal American design movement.
This text anchors itself firmly within the American Arts and Crafts movement, specifically highlighting the industrial yet handcrafted aesthetic pioneered by Elbert Hubbard’s Roycroft community near Buffalo. It serves as a historical record of this pivotal design era, bridging the gap between early 20th-century craftsmanship and modern collector interests.
📝 Description: Roycroft Art Metal (Rev and Expanded)
💎 Expert review
📖 Why choose it
Why this book is worth reading
This revised volume is an indispensable resource for the growing community of Arts and Crafts enthusiasts who seek to understand the rugged elegance of Roycroft metalwork. Kevin McConnell provides a definitive field guide that goes beyond simple listing, offering precise identification tips and current market values for bowls, jewelry, and desk accessories. With 179 vibrant illustrations and rare archival advertisements, it delivers a complete picture of this pivotal American design movement. Collectors will appreciate the accessible yet exquisite cataloging of Hubbard’s creations, making this essential for anyone looking to identify, value, or simply admire the accessible art metal pieces that defined an era of thoughtful industrial design.
⭐ Reader reviews
Reader rating
Arrived faster than expected and well packaged. Plenty of passages worth underlining; my copy is already full of margin notes. Highly recommend to serious students.
Arrived faster than expected and well packaged. The symbolism is layered and generous to patient readers. Some archaic spellings slow things down.
I keep coming back to this one. It reads better in small doses — a chapter at a time with notes.
First purchase from this shop. I found myself reading passages aloud just to sit with them. The language takes some getting used to, but it becomes part of the charm. Some archaic spellings slow things down. Recommended with reservations.
As someone who reads a lot in this field, I can be picky. Plenty of passages worth underlining; my copy is already full of margin notes. The typesetting is comfortable for study, with good margins for notes. Highly recommend to serious students.
McConnell’s revised edition succeeds as a robust collector's guide, leveraging color-rich visuals and historical depth to appeal directly to niche enthusiasts. It is undeniably valuable for those already invested in Roycroft items or the broader Arts and Crafts sphere. However, general readers seeking theoretical art history may find the heavy focus on market values and specific identification tips dry or overly commercial. It is not suited for casual browsers looking for broad philosophical overviews of the movement without practical application. Those interested in pure academic critique rather than tangible asset evaluation might feel the text lacks sufficient critical distance, remaining too closely tied to the collector's mindset.
❓ Frequently asked questions
📖 Who should read this
This volume is indispensable for serious antique dealers, museum curators, and dedicated collectors of American decorative arts who seek to authenticate and value their Roycroft metalwork acquisitions with confidence and precision.
🎯 Key themes and symbolism
Arts and Crafts Legacy
The book contextualizes Roycroft metalwork within the broader English Arts and Crafts movement initiated by William Morris. It explains how Hubbard adapted these ideals to American manufacturing, emphasizing handcrafted quality and honest materials over industrial mass production, thus defining a unique aesthetic identity.
Identification and Valuation
McConnell provides practical tools for distinguishing genuine pieces from reproductions. By detailing specific marks, material compositions, and design variations across categories like candlesticks and bookends, the guide helps collectors accurately assess rarity and determine fair market prices in the current collecting landscape.
Visual Documentation
The inclusion of 179 full-color images allows for close inspection of textures and finishes. This visual archive supports the textual history, enabling readers to compare their own collections against documented examples and appreciate the subtle nuances in the hand-hammered and patinated surfaces characteristic of the era.
💬 Quotes from the book
“Elbert Hubbard began a new industry dedicated to quality of design and manufacture.”
“The most available, affordable, and varied of all Roycroft collectibles.”
📜 Historical context
📚 Glossary
- Roycroft
- Arts and Crafts
- Patina
📔 Questions to reflect on
- How does the hand-hammered texture of Roycroft metal reflect the movement's rejection of industrial uniformity?
- In what ways did Hubbard’s interpretation of William Morris’s ideas differ when applied to American materials and markets?
- Which specific design element in your collection suggests it was produced during the peak of the Roycroft era?
🏛 Books from this publisher Schiffer Publishing
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