Homes of the Brave, Signed by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings
[Signed] Robsjohn-Gibbings, T.H. Homes of the Brave. First Edition. 1954. Book and dust jacket are both in very good condition. Book is inscribed on the flyleaf, “For Jack Hartrick, with best wishes, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings.” Drawings by Mary Petty.
Robsjohn-Gibbings had unkind words for traditional design styles in Good-bye Mr. Chippendale. In this book, he ever so gently pokes fun at Modernism while still setting aside a few pages to skewer his mortal enemy Elsie de Wolfe. The text is both amusing and informative, and Mary Petty’s many full-page pen and ink illustrations are sublime. Full of wit and imagination, they include her interpretations of “Back-to-Nature Modern,” “Aboriginal Modern,” and “Low Life Modern” (which is depicted on the dust jacket cover).
“The important lesson that the hundred-year history of the American house teaches us is that no rigid theory, fashion, or style can create by itself a home we love, a home that seems to know and love us.”
--T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings