Behrens–Herberger (studio)

Three large silver-gelatin architectural photographs - Behrens–Herberger (studio). Interior views of an Anheuser-Busch family residence (Mid-century lodge-style living room), 1950.

A museum-grade record of the private domestic world of the Busch family.

This cohesive display records a wood-paneled living room with exposed beams, tiled floor and oval braided rugs, a slat-back settee, multiple stick/Windsor chairs, tables and lamps, fireplace, and large draped windows.

Three large silver-gelatin architectural photographs of the same room from different angles, each signed and dated in pencil on the mount “Behrens–Herberger ’50.” Image size 13⅜ × 10½ in. on original mounts 19½ × 14 in. 

Condition: clean prints with light edge silver mirroring (age-typical for silver-gelatin); mounts evenly toned with darker right/lower margins and minor upper right corner bump/loss; on two mounts.

Large architectural photographs of a lodge-style living room—exposed timber ceiling and beams, paneled walls with fireplace, tiled floor with oval braided rugs, a slat-back settee and multiple stick/Windsor chairs, tables and lamps—taken in a Busch family residence.

+++ View A (fireplace & window wall): Beamed ceiling; paneled walls; fireplace with twin sconces; large draped window beyond; slat-back settee, stick chairs, oval braided rugs; side tables and lamps.
+++ View B (stone hutch wall): Stone accent wall with lantern sconce; large painted hutch/display cabinet; multiple stick chairs; braided rug foreground; taxidermy mounts above draped windows.
+++ View C (broad room view): Wide shot from opposite corner showing both seating groups, fireplace wall art, braided rugs, and tiled floor; strongest sense of room layout and circulation.

Scholarly Points of Interest:
Material Culture & Design: The photographs provide an exhaustive inventory of period-specific American craftsmanship: exposed timber beams, slat-back settees, Windsor/stick chairs, and hand-braided oval rugs. The presence of taxidermy and stone-hutch accents reflects the hunting-lodge aesthetic prevalent among the American industrial elite of the 1950s.
Architectural Photography Technique: The Behrens–Herberger studio demonstrates mastery of interior depth-of-field and light-balancing. The use of three distinct perspectives (View A, B, and C) provides a 360-degree topographical understanding of the space, moving from intimate hearth-side details to broad-room circulation and layout.
Elite Provenance: These prints originate from the estate of Elene B. Roberson, daughter of August A. Busch, Jr. As primary documents of the family’s private environment, they offer rare insight into the lifestyle and aesthetic preferences of the president of one of America’s most significant corporate dynasties.

Technical Features:
Process: Original silver-gelatin development, exhibiting the characteristic tonal range and depth of pre-digital architectural commissions.
Artist Attribution: Each mount is hand-signed and dated in pencil by the studio, certifying them as original exhibition or archival mounts rather than later commercial reproductions.
State: Image size 13⅜ × 10½ inches on original 19½ × 14 inch mounts.

Bibliographic & Archival Note: While smaller promotional images or newspaper clippings of Busch family residences may exist, these large-scale, studio-mounted prints were likely produced as a private commission for the family’s own historical record. Their survival as a cohesive triplet is rare. They serve as a fundamental resource for researchers of Mid-Century Interior Design, American Industrial Social History, and Twentieth-Century Architectural Photography.

Item #21090

Price: $1,200.00