Elizabeth Browning Jackson, a pioneering artist in the art-furniture movement, was rediscovered in 2021 after a phone call from Stephen Markos, founder of Superhouse Gallery, who had long admired her 1982 sculptural couch "Gloria." Markos urged Jackson to open a barn on her Rhode Island property, where she found her early works—hand-tufted rugs, cut-aluminum furniture, drawings, and prototypes—sealed away for 35 years. This rediscovery culminates at Design Miami 2025, where Superhouse presents Jackson as a foundational voice in the art-furniture movement, alongside contemporaries like Dan Friedman and Wendy Maruyama. Jackson's new exhibition "Re/construct" is also on view at Superhouse's Tribeca space through December 20, featuring reconstructed rugs based on her original 1980s designs.
This story matters because it highlights the ongoing recovery of overlooked female artists from the 1980s avant-garde, correcting historical gaps in the art-furniture movement. Jackson's work—combining razor-sharp aluminum forms with plush, dimensional textiles—represents a unique fusion of sculpture and design that was ahead of its time. Her barn discovery and subsequent gallery representation underscore how institutional and market attention can resurrect entire careers, while her placement at a major design fair alongside peers signals a broader reassessment of the period's material experimentation.