Dowager

36′ x 45″ x 19″ Quartersawn red oak, analine dye, yeast, linseed oil
This piece is part of a series of works based on a late seventeenth century dowry chest from Hadley, MA. I am exploring the idea of dowry, thinking of it in terms of what one brings to a relationship. I am using the given form as a constant through which to physically explore this idea. I am building consecutive ‘dowagers’ based on things revealed by my altering of the structure of the original seventeenth century chest. In this first Dowager, I left the panels out of the part of the chest that defines the storage case, inviting the viewer to enter the interior space of the furniture.