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Philip Lowe Papers, 1967-2020, undated

 Collection
Identifier: MSS 1949

Scope and Contents

The Philip Lowe papers is a collection of photographs, woodworking plans, and other material created by Lowe, throughout the course of his education and career. This collection has been divided into three series.

Series I. Photographs contains photographs, 35mm slides, and CDs with images on them of classes, workshops, and individual pieces created by Lowe and his students. Photographs that were originally organized in boxes, have retained their original order and title.

Series II. Plans contains 487 drawings for work done by Lowe. Most of the plans contain a classification code, identification number, project name, client name, and date. Also included in this series are seven wood patterns. Researchers should refer to the external document "Inventory of Plans" to identify which box(es) to request. Please note that the information found in this spreadsheet came directly from the plan, unless it is in brackets. Client information was not captured for boxes 15 to 62. There is an additional spreadsheet, "Original Inventory" that was provided by the donor; however, the identification numbers and project names do not always match up to what is written on the item; it is unclear who compiled this spreadsheet.

Series III. Publications and Workshops contains educational information created by Lowe. This includes drafts of a book or article(s) with photographs submitted to a publisher, and DVDs of workshops. The photographs have accompanying CDs with copies of the images. Bbox 14, folders four, five, and six contain contents removed from floppy disks.

Dates

  • Creation: 1967-2020, undated

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research use. Box 13, and box 14 folder 3 are restricted due to format.

Biographical / Historical

Philip (Phil) Conlon Lowe was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1948 (Ancestry.com). He graduated from the North Bennet Street School's(Boston, Massachusetts) Cabinet and Furniture Making program in 1974, and would later work as an instructor from 1975 to 1985. In addition to teaching, Lowe operated his own furniture making and restoration business, completing work for private clients, including the National Park Service, and museums. His work included furniture, accessories, staircase banisters, and more.

In 1989, Lowe started the Furniture Institute of Massachusetts, in Beverly, Massachusetts, where he continued his teaching, building, and restoration work. He taught classes, workshops, authored articles, and appeared in DVDs. In 2005, he was awarded the Cartouche Award from the Society of American Period Furniture Makers, and in 2010, was chosen for the Artisanship Award from the Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America (North Bennet Street School).

Lowe was married to Sandra McIntyre Lowe until his death in January 2021.

Extent

31.29 Linear Feet (95 boxes, 1 flat file )

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The Philip Lowe papers is a collection of photographs, woodworking plans, and other material created by Lowe, throughout the course of his education and career.

Series List

SERIES I. Photographs



SERIES II. Plans



SERIES III. Publications and Workshops

Provenance

This material was given in memory of Philip Conlon Lowe--furniture maker, by Sandra J. McIntyre Lowe, on March 27, 2023 (Acc 2023.019). After Lowe's death, his plans were given to a former student, before being returned to his widow, for donation to the Phillips Library.

Bibliography and Related Collections

Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, U.S., Birth Index, 1860-1970 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.

North Bennet Street School. "In Memory of Philip C. Lowe CF ’74." Accessed July 11, 2023. https://nbss.edu/news-events/news-stories/in-memory-phil-lowe/

Processing Information

This material was placed in acid free folders.

Title
Philip Lowe Papers, 1967-2020, undated
Status
Completed
Author
Hilary Streifer
Date
September 2023
Description rules
Dacs
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Phillips Library Repository

Contact:
Peabody Essex Museum
306 Newburyport Turnpike
Rowley MA 01969 USA