A37: California Hallway, c. 1940

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):

37: California Hallway, c. 1940
“Decorating is eliminating,” wrote American furniture designer Paul T. Frankl in his influential New Dimensions in 1928. “Simple lines are modern. They are restful to the eye and dignified and tend to cover up the complexity of the machine age. If they do not completely do this, they at least divert our attention and allow us to feel ourselves master of the machine.” This interior, which was described by Mrs. Thorne as a “modern art gallery,” seems to follow Frankl’s prescription for a truly modern décor. The dark floor and off-white carpet, architectural treatment of the walls, and restrained furnishings all serve to highlight a remarkable collection of actual works of art in miniature, all but one by French painters.
To the left of the French doors is a gouache painting entitled At the Seaside by Jean-Victor Hugo (1894–1984), a great-grandson of the famous nineteenth-century French writer. To the right of the doors is a crayon drawing, Walk in the Forest, by Marie Laurencin (1883–1956), who figured prominently in the circle around Pablo Picasso in Paris before World War I. Two bronze sculptures of standing female nudes, by the American sculptor John Storrs (1885–1956), are placed in the curtained window recesses to either side of the fireplace. On the chimney breast hangs a still life in oil by the abstract painter Amédée Ozenfant (1886–1966). Over the couch at the right is a composition in gouache by another Cubist, Fernand Léger (1881–1955). The four watercolor compositions arranged on either side of the couch are the work of Léopold Survage (1879–1968). Mrs. Thorne commissioned the works by Léger, Ozenfant, and Survage especially for this room.
The furniture in this San Francisco penthouse interior—with its flat surfaces, low lines, and pronounced angles—is typical of the international modernist style that came to the United States from Europe. Also characteristic of this manner is the use of occasional bright color spots, as in the red upholstery; of modern materials like the lucite in the two chairs on either side of the couch; and of light wood veneers, as in the coffee table and one-arm benches.
Through the French doors, a spectacular view of San Francisco offers a glimpse of part of Treasure Island and the then newly built Golden Gate Bridge (completed in 1937), silhouetted by twinkling lights against the night sky.
This room measures 13 7/8 x 16 5/8 x 19 3/4 inches.