A REGENCY PAINTED AND PARCEL GILT ARMCHAIRIN THE MANNER OF GEORGE SMITH, CIRCA 181582cm high, 56cm wide, 55cm deep overallThe design of this armchair is based on the designs for armchairs by George Smith published in 'A Collection of Designs for Household Furniture and Interior Decoration in the Most Approved and Elegant Taste' (1808). The monopodia reflect the 'antique' taste prevalent in England at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries and encouraged by Charles Heathcote Tatham's 'Etchings of Ancient Ornamental Architecture drawn from the originals in Rome...1794-6'( published in 1801). Although little is known about George Smith's professional career, he remains a well known name through his publication 'A Collection of Designs for Household Furniture and Interior Decoration' of 1808 and his 'Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer's Guide' (1826). He is thought to have been a practising craftsmen and claimed, without known documentation, to be an upholsterer to the Prince of Wales and Smith's Household Furniture certainly has a very strong emphasis on upholstery and interior detailing. Smith made extensive use of the forms of classical furniture and his Household Furniture along with Tatham's Etchings... (1810) and Thomas Hope's, Household Furniture and Interior Decoration(1807)all helped to maintain the fashion for classical furniture. Smith in particular makes extensive use of animal monopodiae on pieces ranging from tables and sideboards to chairs and sofas.