Government House Consoles

Object  2 Consoles with mirrors 

Period   Early 20th Century

The work on the Consoles for Government House, Wellington New Zealand, required the team’s expertise in conservation and  furniture design.

The mirror frames and decorative elements had been put into storage, and neither of them had a base.  These remaining pieces were covered with layers of paint.  However there were traces of the original work, and sometimes a hint of gilding is all that is needed to recognise the original intention.

The team at Studio Carolina Izzo researched the other furniture inside Government House and came up with a design for consoles to hold the mirrors.  The design of the console had to satisfy many requirements.  First, that there was a logical explanation for the design itself, and that there was an historical precedent for the choices made.  Also, that the consoles  were an appropriate size to fit the scale of the large oval mirrors.  And finally that the completed object had an aesthetic appeal which sat well in the environment of Government House.

This is a fine example of how to conserve an object, even when there are parts missing.