A11: Rhode Island Parlor, c. 1820

Narcissa Niblack Thorne, creator of the Thorne Rooms, combined a deep knowledge of design history with a vivid imaginative sensibility. In the 1930s, she assembled a team of skilled artisans in Chicago to construct a series of intricately detailed interiors at the scale of one inch to one foot (1:12).

Conceived as a visual history of interior design, the rooms are at once scholarly and inventive. Meticulously researched and carefully composed, they balance historical accuracy with artistic interpretation. Each atmospheric interior feels like a stage set awaiting its occupants—two parts fantasy, one part history, and entirely absorbing.

Entry from Fannia Weingartner, Miniature Rooms: The Thorne Rooms at the Art Institute of Chicago, 2nd ed. (The Art Institute of Chicago, 2004):

11: Rhode Island Parlor, c. 1820
Prosperity created a demand for the services of architects and fine cabinetmakers in Rhode Island and elsewhere along the Atlantic Coast. As in other regions, styles and motifs popular in England found their way into the local idiom. In this interior, the elaborate ornamentation of the dado was characteristic of the architect responsible for house, Russell Warren, of Bristol, Rhode Island. Warren was active during the first three decades of the nineteenth century, designing some of the finest residences and public buildings in the state. Also typical of his work is the hallway through the doorway on the right, with its classical entrance featuring a delicate fanlight and sidelights, and plastered walls decorated with a stenciled design.
The open armchairs, the mirror on the right wall, and the tea table in front of the fireplace are modeled in the Chippendale style. Several of the other pieces are based on originals executed by well-known Rhode Island cabinetmakers. The card table against the left wall reflects an original designed around 1766 by John Townsend of Newport. He was also responsible for the original of the blockfront chest against the right wall and, possibly, the chairs flanking the chest. The handsome secretary in the recess of the left wall reflects a model attributed to John Goddard, who established a reputation in the 1770s for his desks, secretaries, and bonnet-topped high chests of drawers. The rug is a needlepoint copy of an oriental design. The tea service on the table is made of silver. The portrait over the fireplace is an antique miniature.
This room measures 10 1/8 x 18 1/4 x 17 1/2 inches.