A Complex Fate : Gustav Stickley and the Craftsman Movement

Rating:
Summary: Behind the Craftsman: Stickley the man
Review: I have spent the last year reading much of what is available about the life of Gustav Stickley and the Arts and Crafts Movement in America. Unfortunately, there are precious few volumes that attack the subject with any hard investigation. Mr. Sanders' book is easily a step in the right direction. I was very pleased to discover a host of information that was hitherto completely ignored or missed by other authors. It is not a book about his furniture, it is a book about the man. There are too many books available that stress the former to ignore the latter. Further, Sanders does not treat his subject with the typical sentimentality of other biographers. In fact, in sometimes Sanders goes too far in pointing out Stickley's contradictions (at one one point making the tenuous comparison between Stickley and men such as Ivan Boesky and Michael Milken). Stickley is never painted in a completely pleasing light. This is a far cry from the Stickley rhetoric so often repeated by those in his new following which is always very positive. At times there are gaping holes in Sanders' research, but I would like to point out that the author's honesty at not claiming to be able to completely pin down his subject is somewhat refreashing. After all it can be very disconcerting realizing an author is leaving out all mention of certain facts and connections to save face rather than owning up to some small defeats. Sometimes what an author doesn't say speaks volumes. It must be remembered that Stickley was not a Statesman or President, he was a furniture manufacturer, publisher and businessman. Therefore, there is not a enormous treasure trove of information just waiting to dissected and interpreted by latter-day scholars. Sanders does the right thing by taking Stickley's own words (printed in his catalogs and his Craftsman magazine) to help desribe his philosophy and interests. His other research is rather exhaustive and his references wide-ranging. The book is also well footnoted. Most importantly, it is well written. It covers many years and a lot of dates and factoids but it remains very readable to the end. It should not be considered the last word on Stickley but it does fill in where others have left off. Bankrupt by 1916, Stickley's own empire crumbled and he went on to live in relative obscurity. Today, everything he created is seen as among the very best in early Modernism and his design influence can be seen in a myriad of disciplines. His furniture comands astronomical prices at auction and homes reflecting his Cratsman ideal ( "Craftsman" has even become a catchall word to desribe almost any small bunglow built during the time) are sought after in nearly every major American city. He has converted a huge new following of devotees nearly a century after his first furniture was produced. Furniture manufactures rake in huge profits by copying his older designs (just as they did in the first part of the century) and Mission furniture is again very much in vogue. All this from a poor, second generation German immigrant from Wisconsin. A "Complex Fate"? Without a doubt.

Rating:
Summary: Much needed for research, etc.
Review: If you collect items or information on Stickley, buy this book. It has extensive end notes and a fine bibliography, which makes it an outstanding piece of reference material. I'm an information junkie, and in my opinion, A COMPLEX FATE is worth owning if only for the doors it will open to additional information -- an outstanding resource.

Rating:
Summary: A Complex Fate
Review: This is a bad book. Not because it's written badly - it's not. It's really a good read. But you cannot tell fact from fiction. Barry Sanders was an early Stickley collector and I think this book was written in the 1970s but found no publisher. Now with the craze on all things Stickley it surfaces. His research is dated and in many cases supplanted by much newer information. The footnotes indicate he has read Mary Ann Smith's groundbreaking book Gustav Stickley: The Craftsman and yet he states as fact many things that are the opposite of what Smith writes, and footnotes, in her book. Sanders' research is poor and he does not separate fact from his own speculation in the text. Readers should refer to Smith (though dated) and to Marilyn Fish's continuing series of books for the latest accurate information. Please see my review in the Winter 1999 issue of Style 1900 magazine for more details on Sanders and Fish books.