Shaker designs have a purity and simplicity that is sharply contemporary. Yet their unique appeal goes far beyond style. Every piece of furniture has the grace and humility which characterises Shaker and bears witness to the deeply religious motivation of each craftsman Brother and Sister. Though the integrity of each design rests on a perfect harmony of beauty and utility, the heart of it lies in the Shaker’s sincere belief that everything they did was an expression of faith. With this shining goal of perfection, the Shaker craftsmen broke new ground in both design and technique. Because God was all-seeing, new construction and finishing methods ensured that furniture looked perfect from every angle. Because believers were adjured to “Work as though you have a thousand years to live, and as though you might die tomorrow.” Everything was designed to last better than ever before, to bear lasting testament to each life of faithful creativity. Nothing that was not useful could be made. No superfluous ornamentation was permitted. Yet within these boundaries, there was a joyful use of colour, line, shape and pattern. Every aspect of Shaker craftsmanship had an inner meaning and the fact that the Shakers were essentially a religious farming community makes the architecture, the furniture and the products they created and invented even more intriguing.
The name Shaker evolved from a derisory term,The Shaking Quakers, which described their enthusiastic whirling and dancing during their religious service. The Shakers under the leadership of Ann Lee arrived in America from England in 1774. The Shakers were unlike any other religious community. There were some similarities with The Quakers and The Amish such as plainness of dress, pacifism and nonmaterialism. They all opposed slavery and shared a deep respect for the land and natures resources.
However there are, profound differences. Unlike The Amish, The Shakers believed in the equality of the sexes and wholeheartedly embraced modernity. The Shakers always had running water and electricity before their neighbours and were usually the first to own motor cars. Shaker communities did not grow in the organic and random fashion that characterised English villages. Their villages were an assembly of three or four separate groups or families. The number of believers in a family varied from 25 to as many as 150, but the average family group was around 50. Each had their own Dwelling house and outbuildings but shared the main Meeting house.
The nature of Shaker communities created their own architectural problems which The Shaker builders overcame beautifully; whether it was designing dwelling houses for a celibate society or meeting houses with 5000 square feet of uninterupted floor space for 500 dancing worshippers and 1000 visitors. Even Shaker barns were incredibly well designed. The round barn at Hancock village is an ingenious concept and fulfills the Shaker theory “That which has in itself the highest use, possesses the greatest quality.”
From the beginning the Shakers made their communities self sufficient. It was hard in the early days but by 1820 a number of ‘industries‘ were flourishing. The Shakers were well known for dried sweet corn, apples, apple sauce, jam and preserves. They also developed a reputation for medicinal herbs which they grew, processed and sold through pharmaceutical companies. At about the same time the Shakers were selling packets of garden seeds throughout America. The Shaker brothers were responsible for oval boxes and of course chairs. They were making them commercially at the end of the eighteeth century but it became a serious business in 1852. Based at New Lebanon, New York they produced the delicate, carefully proportioned styles that are still sold today
There is no unnecessary adornment on Shaker products and furniture. Everything works and follows the Shaker belief that, ‘Beauty rests on utility’. They explained it this way: “Anything may be called perfect when it perfectly answers the function for which it was designed”.
As in all things the Shakers did not work for individual gain but for the good of the community.
In everything the Shakers did commercially they were famed for their “Shaker Made” was synonymous with quality: IT STILL IS.
