The Furniture History Society

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The Annual Symposium is a day-long event normally held at the Victoria and Albert Museum in February. It is devoted to a specific theme that is explored in a series of illustrated lectures presented by leading scholars followed by question and answer sessions. Recent symposia have been devoted to “Cultural Crossovers - The Convergence of East and West in Furniture Design” (2004), “Royal Furniture” (2003), “Metal Furniture” (2002), “Nineteenth-century Designers and Manufacturers” (2001), Major British Cabinetmaking firms (2000) and “Irish Furniture” (1999). Earlier topics have included Indian furniture, Boulle, the French Empire style and japanning.
The Annual Symposium is open to non-members and regularly attracts a substantial international audience. For the full details of the next Symposium, please click here (PDF, 787Kb). There is still limited availability for the 2008 Symposium, for application details please click here (DOC, 127.5Kb).

The Annual Lecture, usually held in London in the Autumn, is given by a distinguished scholar and often presents recent research work. The 2003 lecture entitled “From Brettingham to Vardy: Architect Designed Giltwood Furniture” was by Dr. Tessa Murdoch, Deputy Keeper of Sculpture, Metalwork, Ceramics and Glass at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It is open to members only.

The Annual General Meeting is usually held in or near London each autumn and is generally at a house or museum where an important collection of furniture may be visited after the formalities of the meeting. The meeting includes a session in which representatives from major furniture-holding institutions in the United Kingdom, such as the National Trust, the Geffrye Museum, Temple Newsam House, English Heritage, the Royal Collection or the Victoria and Albert Museum deliver illustrated talks about recent developments in furniture studies at their institutions.

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