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©2005 Yoav S. Liberman

A House Divided, 2007

Found windsor chair, spalted maple, southern yellow pine, west african wenge, pigment.

Cracks, splits, separations and divides are acts of the physical world as well as human nature. I found this chair three years ago and was thinking to implant a traditional woodworking device, called a butterfly key, to bridge the gap and stabilize the split seat. I even envisioned a transparent butterfly, made from resin, in which real butterfly wings could be embedded. However, for this 19th century beaten-up Windsor chair, another fate awaited.

"I think that one of the causes of these repeated failures is that our best and greatest men have greatly underestimated the size of this question. They have constantly brought forward small cures for great sores -- plasters too small to cover the wound. That is one reason that all settlements have proved so temporary -- so evanescent. [Applause.]"..... (1)

This chair and its symbolic plaster is an allegory for a broken union and a tribute for great words by a great man, who at first tried to keep things together, and then ... resolution; and war; and restoration; and union.

The key I crafted is a morphed scarf joint. Scarf joints or shiribasami tsugi (3), are used to connect short beams together. I used Southern yellow pine to lock into Northern spalted maple and both are fused together with a securing wedge from west african Wenga wood.

This chair is in conflict and so it will remain.

This lumber’s diverse coloration, outstanding terrain, and sensational texture is the reason I decided to put it to the fore - to expose it to the public. It is, I believe, a rare opportunity to see what wood sometimes really looks like. When we transform lumber into boards and parts for furniture, we peel it, cut, sand and finish it. I wanted to show that sometimes this process is actually unnecessary and beauty is already there - on the surface.

"....that agitation has not only not ceased, but has constantly augmented. In my opinion, it will not cease, until a crisis shall have been reached and passed. "A house divided against itself cannot stand." ....(2)

(1) Abraham Lincoln's speech at New Haven, Connecticut, March 6, 1860.
(2) Abraham Lincoln's speech at Springfield, Illinois, June 16, 1858.
(3) shiribasami tsugi, is a japanese joint that is used to connect beams and foundation footings.

Photography: Yoav S. Liberman

Photo editing: Dan Lieberman