Chiffonier

This idiosyncratic chiffonier was made by the self-taught South Australian artist Maud Baillie. Born Maud Golley in 1884, she lived with her family on the small, remote Wedge Island, in the Spencer Gulf. Isolated from traditional systems of art education, she, according to family folklore, learnt to carve her elaborate high-relief designs by carving the cuttlefish that washed up in abundance on her island. Using her much loved pocket-knife and chisel, she later worked on driftwood to create elaborately decorated furniture, including this chiffonier. Wood carving was popular at the Adelaide School of Design, South Australia’s answer to the teachings of the British Arts and Crafts Movement.

The chiffonier features an unusual amalgamation of carved designs drawn from Golley’s immediate environment: grapevines, rope, flowers, seashells, native birds and stars, as well as a patriotic coat of arms. Two seated lions sit at each side of the chiffonier, perhaps a nod to Britain. Golley went on to exhibit two pieces of furniture in the 1907 Australian Exhibition of Women’s Work, held in Melbourne. The chiffonier is a remarkable example of original design in early twentieth-century Australian furniture.

Rebecca Evans, Curator of Decorative Arts & Design