Chest

Arts of the Americas

1780/1830

Attributed to the Valdés family
Active 18th–19th century
New Mexico

Eighteenth- and nineteenth century New Mexican craftsmen made furniture that was largely based on Spanish forms and traditions, using local woods, simple tools, and minimal decoration. The Art Institute’s chest was likely crafted by a member of the lauded Valdés family, which worked for many generations in Taos County. Chests, both imported and locally made, were the most common furniture used in colonial New Mexico.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Arts of the Americas

Artist: Francisco A. Valdez
Title: Chest
Place: Velarde (Object made in)
Date: c. 1780–1830
Medium: Ponderosa pine, metal, and paint
Dimensions: 82.6 × 95.6 × 52.4 cm (32 1/2 × 37 5/8 × 20 5/8 in.)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by an anonymous donor in honor of Nelson E. Smyth; purchased with funds provided by Warren L. Batts, Jamee J. and Marshall Field, Mrs. Frank L. Sulzberger, and Wesley M. Dixon Jr.
Reference Number: 1986.419
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/109694/manifest.json

Paul A. F. Walter, “A New Mexico Lourdes,” El Palacio, 3, no. 2 (Jan. 1916), 3–27 (ill.).
Patrick Pacheco, “New Mexico Style,” Art and Antiques, April 1986, 68–75 (ill.).
Streck’s Auction Service, Santa Fe, NM, The Forest Fenn Collection, Sale Cat., August 15, 1986, lot 199 (ill. front cover).
Jane van N. Turano, “A Special Week of American Indian Art Shows and Auctions,” Maine Antique Digest, October 1986, 1B–3B (ill.).
Lonn Taylor and Dessa Bokides, New Mexican Furniture, 1600–1940, Santa Fe, 1987 (ill.) (incorrectly credited to Fenn Galleries, Ltd., Santa Fe, NM).
Tom Armstrong, The New Field–McCormick Galleries in the Art Institute of Chicago, The Magazine Antiques, CXXXIV, no. 4 (Oct. 1988), 822–835, (ill.).
Lita Solis–Cohen, Chicago Shows Off –––Tastefully, Maine Antiques Digest, December 1988, 12B–15B (ill.).
Milo M. Naeve, Identifying American Furniture, Nashville, American Association for State and Local History, 1989, 2nd ed., no. 160, 60– (ill.).
Judith A. Barter and Monica Obniski, “For Kith and Kin: The Folk Art Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago,” (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2012) no. 1.
Penelope Hunter–Stiebel, Furnishing the Santa Fe Style, An Investigation in Two Parts, Part I: The Unexpected Designer Jesse L. Nusbaum, 1887–1975, El Palacio, v. 118, no. 1 (Spring, 2013), 32–41 (ill. p. 37).
Karla Klein Albertson, “Photography + Folk Art,” Antiques and the Arts Weekly, Nov. 19, 2019, https://www.antiquesandthearts.com/photography-folk-art, ill.

Art Institute of Chicago, Photography + Folk Art: Looking for America in the 1930s, Sept. 21, 2019–Jan. 19, 2020, no cat.

Possibly Church of San Francisco de Assis, Rancho de Taos, NM; possibly Bert Phillips (1868-1956), Taos, NM, painter and dealer; Taos painter E. I. Couse (1866-1936) about 1909; by descent to Marion and Kibby Couse (daughter-in-law and son of the artist); sold to Wolf Pogzeba (early 1970s-1979); with Forest Fenn Galleries, Ltd., Santa Fe, NM, 1979-1986; consigned to Streck’s Auction Service, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1986; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, August 15, 1986, lot 199.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Currently Off View

Status

Department

Artist

Title

Place

Date

Medium

Dimensions

Credit Line

Reference Number

IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

Explore Further

Suggested Terms

See all hours

Currently Off View

Date:

Artist:

About this artwork

Status

Department

Artist

Title

Place

Date

Medium

Dimensions

Credit Line

Reference Number

IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.

Extended information about this artwork

Publication History

Exhibition History

Provenance

Share

Explore Further

Related artworks

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Gallery actions

Image actions

Share

IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.