Furnishing the White House: The Decorative Arts Collection

From the early nineteenth century when First Lady Dolley Madison enlisted architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe to design seating for her Oval Drawing Room, to the late nineteenth century when President Chester A. Arthur called on Louis Comfort Tiffany to redesign the State Rooms, to the 1960s when First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy established a committee to aid her restoration of historic interiors, the furnishing of the White House reflects changes in the nation’s taste, its styles of decoration, and an increasing interest in the country’s history and its cultural heritage. Furnishing the White The Decorative Arts Collection chronicles the stylistic periods of White House decor, from the late Federal period, through eras of French and British taste, to the emergence of an American identity and the Colonial Revival. It is a study of how furnishings fit for the president of a republic became a museum collection of decorative arts recognized as among the finest in the nation. Richly illustrated with more than 375 images of furniture, china, lighting, textiles, silver, and glass this comprehensive history features stories of how presidents and first ladies lived and entertained in the White House as well as the meaning of objects in diplomacy. The authors also go behind the scenes to explain how museum-quality objects in constant use are conserved.