Philip and Kelvin LaVerne Magnificent "Odyssey" Coffee Table 1960s (Signed)
Evan Lobel
Rare and important "Odyssey” Coffee Table in patinated and engraved bronze and pewter with vibrant hand-painted enamels and gold and copper leaf atop a Greek column pedestal base by Philip & Kelvin LaVerne, American 1960's (signed “Kelvin. Philip LaVerne” on top). This table is based on ancient Greek architecture and mythology. In the 1960’s Kelvin went to Greece to sketch ruins. On the left side of the scene is an artist sitting and sketching on the steps of the Erechtheion ruins. Kelvin LaVerne drew himself into the scene for posterity. On the right side is the Parthenon, and Muses stand in the foreground. Kelvin LaVerne wrote a long recollection and description about this piece featured in the book below.
Reference:
ALCHEMY: THE ART OF PHILIP AND KELVIN LAVERNE written by Evan Lobel with Kelvin LaVerne, published by Pointed Leaf Press in 2024, this table is discussed in the introduction with commentary by Kelvin LaVerne and it is shown on page 95 in an ad from the 1960s in the section titled Historical Civilization Series. The caption reads, “An advertisement for the 1960s ODYSSEY coffee table points out its hand-carving in bronze and pewter and its classical figures depicted by the Parthenon and the Erechtheion.”
Diam: 47 inches
H: 17 inches
Condition: Excellent
$35,000
ref: coffeetable585