Collectables

The Flowering of Pottery: Moorcroft Exemplifies Late 19th C. English Arts & Craft Styles

Moorcroft pottery and I have a history that goes back more than 34 years, to my first visit to the Richard Dennis Gallery in London’s Kensington Church Street. This was unquestionably a mecca for Moorcroft. For a hopeless ‘potoholic’ such as myself it was obvious that I had found nirvana in W8.

Fast forward to the present day and I have made it to the promised-land ,by virtue of being a non-executive director of W.Moorcroft PLC. I am quite simply Willy Wonka in the chocolate factory. Having had the benefit of a sneak preview of The Richard Wright Collection of Moorcroft Pottery, I can reliably inform you it offers a fascinating selection that illustrates the varied output of this much-loved British Art Pottery, with an abundance of rarities.

Above: (detail) William Moorcroft, Cornflower, a large vase (c.1913) fine arts magazineMore

Museum of Nebraska Art Maintains Legacy of John James Audubon

John James Audubon. The name brings to mind the majestic beauty and grace of a vast collective of wildlife portraiture. However, it is crucial to remember Audubon’s detailed scientific observations as well, for his work in that capacity is still valid today. Fascinated by the natural world around him, Audubon’s ability to capture image and word has enriched the worlds of both art and science immeasurably.

Left: John James Audubon
Hooping Crane (Whooping Crane)
handcolored lithograph – double elephant folio size, 1834
Museum Purchase made possible by Carol Cope and the Museum
Museum of Nebraska Art Collection
Fine Arts MagazineMore

Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, Features French Porcelain Vases from its Decorative Arts Collection

The history of Paris porcelain (known familiarly in France as vieux Paris) began around 1770 and refers not to a single manufacturer, but to more than thirty porcelain sources, based within the City of Paris between the mid-1700s and the end of the Second Empire in 1870. The term was not actually used until the latter part of the nineteenth century. The various Paris artisans, mostly situated in the northeast side of Paris, specialized in adapting the creations of porcelain manufacturer, Sèvres, to bourgeois tastes, while competing with Louis XV’s own Royal Manufactory. Fine Arts Magazine

Left: Pair of vases, France (probably Paris), about 1820. Hard-paste porcelain decorated in polychrome enamels and gilding; ht: 28 ¾”, wd: 12”. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Bequest of Miss Clara Endicott Sears . Photo © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.More

Native American Weaving Traditions Explored in U. Colorado Natural History & Arizona State Anthropology Museum Exhibits

fine arts magazine — Navajo rug. A 'transitional' piece using both diamonds and pictoral motifs

Two recent exhibitions looked at the multiple stories woven into textiles. Navajo Textiles: Diamonds, Dreams, and Landscapes was a year-long exhibition in three themed rotations held at the University of Colorado’s Museum of Natural History in Boulder, Colorado (May 31, 2009 – May 31, 2010). Trading Cloth and Culture was the spring exhibition at the Arizona State University’s Museum of Anthropology (April 8 – June 30, 2010). Both were created under the supervision of Judy M. Newland, the director of ASU’s Museum of Anthropology. In a two-part series, Newland and other members of the faculty and staff at ASU and CU have worked together to produce an important and unique narrative regarding the Native American culture of the Southwest and the important role that woven artifacts have played in understanding the indigenous communities of the far west and the global influences that affect the design work, even today. All pieces pictured are from the University of Colorado textile collection Fine Arts MagazineMore

Surrealist Art Form, Exquisite Corpse, Still Fascinates Artists and Collectors

The Exquisite Corpse has lived many lives!

But first, a brief explanation is required…

The early 20th century was an era of experimentation in the visual arts, music, literature, design and architecture—particularly in Europe. The world was swept up in scientific and industrial innovations of the period. Many believed that civilization stood poised on the brink of radical transformation, where the introduction of the automobile, controlled flight, expanded industrial production, scientific discoveries, growth of cities and reorganization of out-moded monarchies into powerful nation-states, could signal the advent of a new, forward-looking social order.More

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Features Classic Example of Regency Era Design

The Regency era in the United Kingdom is the period between 1811 — when King George III was deemed insane and unfit to rule and his son, the Prince of Wales, ruled as his proxy as Prince Regent — and 1820, when the Prince Regent became George IV on the death of his father. The term Regency is therefore used to describe works of art produced in England between the late 1790s until 1837 when Queen Victoria ascended the throne. [1] Fine Arts MagazineMore

Clifton Monteith Creates Rustic Art Nouveau Furniture from the Heart

Michigan native and artist, Clifton Monteith, feels at home in Japan, understanding the subtle complexity and silent social consciousness that links custom and culture there. This affection is rooted in his earliest memories of a much-admired Japanese silk embroidery and a Chinese rosewood cradle in his grandparents’ home and in the exercise of his craft, which has been a life-long commitment.

(left: Clifton Monteith with a hand-crafted lantern)

“My work is not about the easiest way of working. It relates to the ancient Shinto concept of spirit being in all things – wind, water, stone, wood. I have grown to believe that consciousness is vested in our work and translates to the experience of others who participate with the work when it is done, whether I know them or not. That my work’s process is slow bothers me not as much as if it were hurried and embodied less consciousness.” – Clifton MonteithMore

Michael Aram’s Handcrafted Metals Use Traditional Indian Methods

Olive_Branch_Dish_3[1] — Olive Branch Dish: 2″ high; 4.5″ dia.; Stainless Steel, Oxidized Bronze

Little did Michael Aram know the role that providence would play in his life while on a trip to India twenty years ago. As a recent college grad with a degree in fine arts and a care-free style, a trip to New Delhi to visit a sister and some friends seemed like a splendid idea. But, Aram’s trip was going to be different—on this trip he would discover his ‘true life’s work’.

On arrival, his senses were first piqued by the distinct, yet odd aroma of baking molasses! He would soon learn that this unusual ingredient was used in a sand casting process. He sought out one local craftsman in particular, who spent hours turning metal into utilitarian objects like scissors or buckets. The beauty of the finished products and the creative process used to create them caught him completely by surprise. The skill of these local artisans reflected a hand-wrought aesthetic often hidden by the locals to disguise the fact that each piece was, in fact, crafted by hand. Aram recalls these early, seminal experiences as ‘mind-blowing’.More

‘Primitive Art’ Re-Evaluated in a Global Art Market

15,000 year-old prehistoric Altamira cave painting

In the 1990s, I recall watching Sister Wendy Beckett, the reluctant celebrity spokesperson for a popular PBS series on art appreciation. This sequestered nun, who for decades had lived under a vow of silence, had gained notoriety for her views on famous works of art and now stood in her nun’s habit waxing vociferously before the prehistoric Altamira cave paintings. Self-taught and passionate about the history of art, she gestured at the figures of stampeding bison and elk behind her and said, “These images are 15,000 years old. In the millennia that followed, art didn’t get any better than this, just different.”

In a few words, she summed up the argument for why we should not apply the word, ‘primitive’ to any artistic or material object from cultures far removed from our own tastes and values, simply because we do not understand them.More

Oriental Rugs and ‘Green’ Design

As the movers and shakers of the handmade rug industry, the interior design trade plays a pivotal role in shaping the end consumers’ purchasing decisions. After focusing on the greenness of the handweaving process from the manufacturers’ standpoint (See “Special Green Report—Handmade Rugs—The Original Green Floor Coverings,” ARTES (Oct. 13, 2009), this article takes a hard look at what the country’s most reputed and green-attuned designers and other members of the design community are thinking. Do they view handmade rugs as an eco-friendly floor covering as compared to machine-made?

Noted New York-based interior designer Darren Henault of Darren Henault Interiors, says, “To me, the fact that handmade oriental and decorative rugs are green seems only logical and obvious.” However, for most members of the design trade, awareness of handmade rugs as being green is limited, if not virtually nonexistent. States Laura Bohn of Laura Bohn Design Associates, New York, NY whose work has been featured on CNN Style and HGTV: “I didn’t know that and never thought of it until now!” Adds Mary Douglas Drysdale of Drysdale Design Associates, Washington, DC: “As a group, the designers’ mission is to make things look good and is focused more on instant gratification which is not born out of long-term thinking.” Echoes designer Annette Stelmack of Stelmack & Associates III, Denver, CO and co-author of Residential Sustainable Interiors:1“ For [most] designers, the greenness of floor coverings is not a major preoccupation.”More