The late Gabriel Olive joined the Regional Furniture Society
(then the Regional Furniture Study Group) at its inception in 1984
and became one of its most lively members; his tall, gaunt figure
crowned with its shock of white hair, being a familiar ornament at
many a gathering. His enthusiasm was passionate, and his knowledge
of vernacular furniture of the West Country, built up over many
years of dealing in Somerset, was probably unequalled.
After war service, he completed a BA in classics and history at
Cambridge, followed by a Diploma in Education. For three years he
taught in secondary schools before discovering his real vocation.
For some months he worked for an antique dealer in the Cotswolds,
and in 1952 he opened a shop in Wincanton. Early on he established
a reputation for early and regional furniture, pottery and unusual
items, and found himself inspired, first by Ralph Edwards and
later by Christopher Gilbert, to make a special study of regional
furniture in the West Country. He retired from active dealing in
1978.
Some of us will remember visiting his shop in Wincanton and
being drawn into his fascination with the material history of the
region, sometimes beautiful, often quirky, but always instructive.
Besides furniture, he had pottery, needlework, metalwork and
pictures, and his knack - perhaps, quite unintentionally, his
supreme marketing tool - was to tell each object's story and bring
it alive, as few dealers have the interest to do. A visit to
Gabriel's shop was an excursion: there was no question of 'just
popping in to have a quick look' as is the usual way with the
trade.
Gabriel's writings, born of meticulous observation and
terrier-like research but put together with disarming fluency,
have appeared in many publications over the years, and most
particularly Regional Furniture, which proved the perfect
platform for his scholarly surveys. As a tribute to his tremendous
contribution to regional furniture studies this publication is a
collection of his articles, originally produced to coincide with
the exhibition, West Country Furniture, that he curated in
Winchester for the Society in September 2002.
Noel Riley.
