French Mid-Century Modern
Jacques Sitoleux for Christolfe
"Orgues”
Silver –Plated Metal
1969
DIMENSIONS
Height: 12-1/2 inches Width: 5-1/8 inches Depth: 5-1/8 inches
ABOUT VASE
The extraordinary geometric and minimalist design of this tubular flower vase sets it apart as a true masterpiece, distinguishing it from all others in its class. Its sleek, refined form captures the essence of modern elegance, with bold yet simple lines that exude sophistication and timeless beauty. This vase, like all creations bearing the name of the legendary designer Jacques Sitoleux, showcases a perfect balance of functional artistry and cutting-edge design. Sitoleux, a visionary of the 20th century, was known for his ability to merge craftsmanship with innovation, and this piece stands as a testament to his remarkable skill. Every curve, every angle in the vase reflects his unwavering commitment to both aesthetic perfection and practical utility, making it not just a decorative object, but a statement of design excellence. Whether standing alone or holding a vibrant bouquet, this vase elevates any space with its elegance, embodying the very spirit of French design and the lasting influence of Jacques Sitoleux.
ABOUT ARTIST
Jacques Sitoleux was born in Paris, France in 1930. He spent a large part of his youth in a small village named Sambin, in the "Vallée de la Loire" area. He joined Christofle in 1966 as the director of what was to become the Bureau de Création des Modèles (BCM) and he spent his whole career there, retiring in January 1996. In 1969 He created the amazing collection Christofle Contemporain. It was Henri Bouilhet who launched the idea of a new collection. He clarified his intentions in the release note which accompanied the launch in 1969: Christofle should not be only the “Specialist of past styles”; he wanted the pieces for this new collection "to be at the forefront of contemporary trends". In further reference to the new products, he specified: ‘their life span will be... more ephemeral than that of past style pieces... But it is certain that one will note in decades to come that these contemporary pieces will have defined their time’. The collection Christofle Contemporain was launched in October 1969, intended to be avant- garde in reflecting the evolution of ways of living, in techniques and style. The models were to be mass-produced, similar to Christofle’s classic collections and created in silver-plate of the same high quality. To avoid increasing production costs, they had to be manufactured without creating new tools. Christofle manufactures its own tools, whose cost significantly affects the pieces’ sale price. This constraint was to have a strong influence on the aesthetic of the collection. The team of the BCM explored and experimented with the factory’s resources using tubes, sheets, and existing tools. The first models of Christofle Contemporain were created by Sitoleux and Paultre. The former liked to match geometric volumes, the latter favored curves. The vase "Orgues" designed by Jacques Sitoleux in 1969, and illustrated in this article, is a perfect example of the high quality of this collection. Having joined l’Ecole Boulle in 1945, he graduated with a specialist diploma in etching and jewelry and practiced etching all his life. His professional career began in 1952 with the jeweler Mellerio, where he designed jewelry and religious artifacts. He became very close to Albert Bouilhet, with whom he shared a love of life, a sense of humour and a passion for the craft. Curious about everything, an excellent and rigorous draftsman, his sensitivity and his instinct enabled him to create well-structured pieces in which curves, as he said, “run lovingly”. The draftsman Bernard Yot (b.1944), who joined Christofle in 1964, underwent the same training as Sitoleux, with the same specialization in etching and jewelry. [11] It was his first position and he spent his entire career with the company until his retirement in 2006, with a break of three years between 1968 and 1971. He was replaced in April 1968 by François Paultre (b.1944), hired after leaving l’Ecole Boulle, his specialty being wood carving.[13] The following year he joined the Bureau d’Architecture et de Création leaving Christofle in 1972, for a career in jewelry design. Jean-Pierre Hamard (b.1941), whose speciality was steel engraving, also trained at Boulle, where he was in the same class as Yot. He was hired by Christofle in 1969 as a three-dimensional layout artist in goldsmithing, before becoming Sitoleux’s assistant in 1983. That year he left to lead design at the porcelain manufacturer Bernardaud. In this way, a team of young men who all began their professional lives trained by the Ecole Boulle, gathered around Sitoleux.
$3,500
Continental Art Nouveau
Jewelry Box
Bronzed Copper, Wood, Glass
Ca. 1900
DIMENSIONS
Height: 4.-3/4 inches Width: 14-1/4 inches Depth: 3-7/8 inches
ABOUT
This exquisite jewelry box, likely of French or Austrian origin, boasts an extraordinary design that combines elegance, beauty, and originality, dating from around 1900. At first glance, it evokes the image of a natural gold nugget adorned with sparkling gemstones. However, upon closer inspection, it reveals its true craftsmanship: a wooden frame encased in delicate copper plates, each embossed with asymmetrical organic patterns and set with multicolored glass cabochons. The interior is lined with French silk featuring a charming floral print, adding an extra touch of refinement to this one-of-a-kind piece.
$2,400
French Art Deco
ERTE
a/k/a/ Romain de Tirtoff
“She Loves Me" Vase
Silvered Bronze
1987
DIMENSIONS
Height: 9.5 inches Width: 12.5 inches Depth: 7.5 inches
ABOUT
Erte (a/k/a Romain de Tirtoff, Russian/French, 1892-1990) "She Loves Me" Silvered Bronze Vase, signed on the bottom "Erte" and numbered and stamped in cast "©1987 / CONKER / 194/275".
ABOUT ARTIST
Erté (Romain de Tirtoff) (1892–1990) was a Russian-born French artist and designer, renowned for his work in fashion, illustration, and graphic design. Born in St. Petersburg to an aristocratic family, he was the son of a naval admiral. Initially studying at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts, Erté turned away from a military career to pursue a creative path. He moved to Paris in 1912, where he became a leading figure in the Art Deco movement.
Erte's career spanned multiple disciplines, but he is best known for his extravagant fashion illustrations, set designs, and costume creations for the theater, ballet, and film. His distinctive style combined elegance with dramatic flair, often featuring elongated figures, intricate patterns, and a sophisticated palette. He created iconic designs for the French fashion house Paquin, and his illustrations graced the covers of Harper's Bazaar for over two decades.
In addition to his work in fashion, Erté designed lavish sets and costumes for productions like the Ziegler Follies and The Merry Widow. Throughout his career, he achieved great success in the worlds of fine art, advertising, and commercial design.
Erte's legacy endures in his timeless visual language, which remains a celebrated example of Art Deco elegance. He continued to create until his death in 1990 at the age of 98.
$2,50
Japanese Art Nouveau
Late Meiji period
Urn
Cast Bronze
Circa 1900
DIMENSIONS
Height: 24 in (60.96 cm) Diameter: 21 in (53.34 cm)
ABOUT
This Japanese Art Nouveau bronze urn from the late Meiji period embodies secessionist design with its voluptuous forms, likely intended as an architectural feature. Crafted by hand in Japan during the early 20th century, this substantial piece is made of heavy cast bronze, showcasing exquisite craftsmanship. It remains remarkably preserved in antique condition, displaying age-appropriate wear that enhances its desirable patina.
$18,500
Contemporary Modernism
AZ Cast Products
A Pair of Conical-Shape Urns
Cast Aluminum
Circa 1970s
DIMENSIONS
Height: 20.5 in (52.07 cm) Diameter: 7.5 in (19.05 cm)
DETAILS
Makers mark stamped on to the bottom.
ABOUT
These sleek, modernist urns crafted from heavy cast aluminum boast a distinctive conical shape resting elegantly on cube-shaped bases. Each piece bears the maker's mark stamped on its underside, a testament to their craftsmanship. Created in the 1970s in the United States by AZ Cast Products, this pair embodies both the era's industrial aesthetic and enduring quality.
$3,500
American Art Deco
Planter with Geometrical Design
Anodized & Painted Metal
ca. 1920s
DIMENSIONS
Height: 13.5 inches
Width: 14.5 inches
Depth: 8.25 inches
$2,200
American Streamline Art Deco
Chromed Metal Geometrical Flower Vase with Insert
ca. 1930s
DIMENSIONS Height: 12 inches Width: 7.25 inches Depth: 3.5 inches
ABOUT
Streamline Moderne is an international style of Art Deco architecture and design that emerged in the 1930s. Inspired by aerodynamic design, it emphasized curving forms, long horizontal or vertical lines, and sometimes nautical elements The objects created in this particular style of the end of 1920s and forward through the 1930s characterized especially by sleek geometric or stylized forms and by the use of man-made materials. This flower vase, wonderful in every way, is a very striking example of American Streamline Art Deco, which originated in the USA. This simple utilitarian item, however, combines all the elements that characterize this particular design offshoot of the then global Art Deco trend, including in applied art in the 1930s. Normally, all such objects were designed or arranged in a way that makes movement easier through air or water: a streamlined shape/appearance. Another principal difference is that the Streamline Moderne style is characterized by its lack of ornamentation, such as, for example, linear elements, like the ones we see on this vase. Overall, American Art Deco is often less ornamental than its European predecessor. Beyond the clean lines and strong curves, bold geometric shapes, rich color, and sometimes lavish ornamentation, the American version is more stripped-down. Emerging in the 1930s, Streamline Moderne had become a world leader in the international style of Art Deco in architecture and design. Inspired by aerodynamic design, it emphasized curving forms, long horizontal lines, and sometimes nautical elements. As a movement, Art Deco has quickly spread worldwide, and after falling out of favor for several decades, Art Deco is now making a triumphant comeback.
SOLD
Mildred Watkins
Decorative Plate ‘Clouds’
Enamel on Copper
1948
A copy of this artwork by Mildred Watkins is in the permanent collection of the Crocker Art Museum, Enamel Arts Foundation Collection.
DIMENSIONS Diameter: 7.25 inches Height: 2 inches
MARKINGS Signed and dated on the base: Clouds, Mildred Watkins, 1948
Mildred G. Watkins (American, 1883 – 1968) was the eldest member of a generation of Ohio-based artists who, in turning their attention to enameling, elevated the medium to unprecedented levels of beauty and inventiveness. Watkins is of particular interest to the story of enameling in this country because her beautifully designed, jewel-like enamels provide a vital link between the handwork and design traditions of the Boston Arts and Crafts movement and the more modernist approach of the Cleveland-based enamellists.
Active throughout her life as a silversmith and jeweler as well as an enamelist, Watkins studied at the Cleveland School of Art (now known as the Cleveland Institute of Art) from 1897 to 1901. In Watkins’s final year, Horace E. Potter, an 1898 graduate of the school, taught decorative design. Watkins’s lifelong interest in enameling most likely began in Potter’s class. By the time of her graduation in 1901, Watkins had chosen metal-smithing as her career. About 1905, she moved to Boston to study metalwork with the master silversmith George Christian Gebelein and enameling with Laurin Hovey Martin. Through her studies with Martin, who had, himself, studied enameling in England with the preeminent British enamellist Alexander Fisher, Watkins received solid training in enameling technique, and she was immersed in the philosophies and practices of the Arts and Crafts movement in Boston. Upon completing her studies in Boston, Watkins returned to Cleveland where she taught at the Cleveland School of Art from 1919 until her retirement in 1953.
Mildred Watkins’s earliest enamels are consistent with those produced in the Arts and Crafts period. In most metalwork of this period, enameling, if present at all, is a secondary element in the overall design, of less focal significance than the hand-tooled object it decorates. This relationship was consistent with Arts and Crafts precepts that called for a “due regard for the relation between the form of an object and its use, and of harmony and fitness in the decoration put upon it.” In Watkins’ later work, however, enameling takes on a greater importance as it became the focal element in the overall composition.
SOLD
French Art Deco
Cloisonné Enamel Vase with Fish and Sea Horses
Ca. 1920s
imensions: Height: 15-1/4 inches Diameter: 7 inches
Probably, by Maison Paul Lauchet Paris, this elegant French Art Deco (circa 1930) flower vase combines the simplicity and brevity of lines of the stylized fish and sea horses on the foreground of sea waves of almost geometrical design. The complexity and sophistication of the pattern done in the famous French technique, Champlevé is enriched by the bright multi-color enamel, covering the complete perimeter of the vase.
Paul François Louchet (French 1854-1936) was a famous painter and designer, whose creation during the Art Nouveau and Art Deco era were extremely popular and in great demand. He trained by Jules Lefebvre and Henri Harpignies. He exhibited at the Paris Salon. He began by working on the technique of carving, his studio located at No. 3, Rue Auber, in the 9th arrondissement of Paris and his creations are identifiable with the stamp Louchet Fondeur Paris.
A friend of Majorelle, Daum and Lalique, he was president of the Chambre Syndicale des Manufacturers de Bronze1. Mayor of the city of Herblay in 1887, he raised strong protests (with a trial that was lost) against the spill of the sewers of Paris in the plains of Achères. The epidemic of typhoid attributed to the insalubrity thus generated carried off her fifteen-year-old daughter and, distraught, Paul Louchet abandoned business to, from 1890, devote himself to painting. He was also a sculptor and aquafortist. Friend of Henri Harpignies with whom he painted in the forest of Fontainebleau, also posing his easel in the region of Melun and Meaux, even making a trip to North Africa, he mainly painted landscapes that are distinguished by an iridescent light that it is particular to him.
Cloisonné is an ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects. In recent centuries, vitreous enamel has been used, and inlays of cut gemstones, glass and other materials were also used during older periods. The resulting objects can also be called cloisonné. The decoration is formed by first adding compartments (cloisons in French to the metal object by soldering or affixing silver or gold wires or thin strips placed on their edges. These remain visible in the finished piece, separating the different compartments of the enamel or inlays, which are often of several colors. Cloisonné enamel objects are worked on with enamel powder made into a paste, which then needs to be fired in a kiln.
In antiquity, the cloisonné technique was mostly used for jewellery and small fittings for clothes, weapons or similar small objects decorated with geometric or schematic designs, with thick cloison walls. In the Byzantine Empire techniques using thinner wires were developed to allow more pictorial images to be produced, mostly used for religious images and jewelry, and by then always using enamel. By the 14th century this enamel technique had spread to China, where it was soon used for much larger vessels such as bowls and vases; the technique remains common in China to the present day, and cloisonné enamel objects using Chinese-derived styles were produced in the West from the 18th century.
sold
Swiss Art Deco
A L'Emeraude
Brass and Emerald-Green Guilloche Enamel
Photo Frame
1920s
This stunning A l'Emeraude Brass, Patinated Bronze and Guilloche Enamel Photo Frame was made in the 1920s.
Dimensions:
Height: 9-7/16 inches Width: 6 inches
A l’Emeraude Chronometry & Jewelery, founded in 1909, has forged a reputation for excellence in Switzerland and internationally. It has welcomed many crowned heads, an increasingly diverse, and numerous clientele. Still in existence today after over 110 years in business, since June 2017 it now houses a new unique space in Lausanne, Switzerland, entirely dedicated to Patek Philippe and Rolex watches.
$2,200
Silvered Pewter and Rock Crystal
Sculpture of
Penguin Family,
Ca. 1920's
Dimensions:
Height: 4” Width: 4.5” Depth: 8”
Perfect as a desk or table sculpture, as well as valet, ring dish etc.
SOLD
Potter Studio
Hand-Carved White Jade & Brass
~ Bookends ~
Ca. 1915-1924
This rare pair of elegant bookends by the famous Potter Studio is a very bright example of an object in the pure Arts and Crafts movement tradition - the perfect rendering, the conciseness of design, the severity and the refined simplicity of the lines of the brass parts; as well as the use of contrasting romantic elements - in this case, beautifully hand-carved white jade medallions, depicting Paradise birds surrounded by flowers.
Dimensions:
Height: 5 1/2" Length: 7" Width: 4"
Both bookends are in excellent antique condition: the brass parts have original intact patina with no scratches or imperfections; the hand-carved white jade medallions are in perfect condition with no brakes or cracks. Each of the bookends is hallmarked "Potter Studio".
Horace E. Potter (1873 - 1948)
Horace Ephraim Potter was born into a prosperous Cleveland family in 1873…. Potter began his studies [at the Cleveland School of Art (CSA)] in 1894, graduating in June 1898…. After graduation from CSA, Potter embarked upon a year of study with Amy Sacker at the Cowles School of Art in Boston. Potter exhibited in [the Boston Society of Arts and Crafts'] second annual exhibitionin Copley Hall in April 1899, and at the conclusion of his studies received a master's degree, specializing in metalwork. Returning to Cleveland, he taught at the Cleveland School of Art from 1900 to 1909, giving classes in decorative design and historic ornament.
While teaching, Potter established a studio in downtown Cleveland. In 1905 he moved to his family's farm on the edge of the city, converting a chicken coop where he and CSA classmates Wilhelmina Stephan and Ferdinand Burgdorff designed and made silver and jewelry…. Potter maintained strong ties with Boston, becoming a "craftsman" member of the Society of Arts and Crafts in 1907 and attaining master classification the following year.
Potter spent four and a half months in England and Europe in the spring and summer of 1907, visiting Ashbee in August…. When Potter returned from his European trip in 1907, it was clear that his experience of Ashbee's Guild of Handicraft had confirmed his belief that the creative spirit was best nurtured when artists worked together. Moving to a series of locations on Euclid Avenue between 1910 and 1928, Potter expanded his space and founded Potter Studio.
Potter may have been attempting to recreate the interdisciplinary atmosphere of Ashbee's guild by opening his premises to other artists as well. He employed fellow graduates and former students of the Cleveland School of Art, and welcomed artists in other mediums with lodging and studio space. R. Guy Cowan, the founder of Cowan Pottery, came to Cleveland in 1908 to establish a ceramics program at the city's innovative Technical High School. Potter became Cowan's landlord and supported his endeavors. Cowan founded his own business in 1913, but Potter purchased studio-made vessels as early as 1909 and embellished them with silver or pewter lids.
Marrying fellow silversmith Florence Loomis in 1914, he went on to found Potter & Bentley Studios in 1928, and Potter & Mellen in 1933. In 1928, Gurdon W. Bentley and Potter became partners, moved the shop to its current location, and renamed it Potter Bentley Studios. The new shop expanded to sell items such as china and garden accessories. Bentley dissolved the partnership in 1933, and that year Louis Mellen joined the company, which was renamed to its present Potter and Mellen, Inc. Horace E. Potter died in 1948,and in 1967, Louis Mellen sold the firm to both Frederick Miller,a renowned designer & silversmith, and Jack Schlundt. Together both maintained the tradition of hand-wrought jewelry and hollowware.
In 1989, Ellen Stirn Mavec purchased Potter and Mellen, Inc. which remains in its same location at 10405 Carnegie Avenue. Ellen has continued the tradition of excellence in craftsmanship by hiring only the finest jewelers to work in the studios, as well as highlighting giftware and antiques, her personal expertise.
Arts and Crafts movement
The Arts and Crafts movement was an international movement in the decorative and fine arts that began in Britain and flourished in Europe and North America between 1880 and 1910, emerging in Japan in the 1920s. it stood for traditional craftsmanship using simple forms, and often used medieval, romantic, or folk styles of decoration. It advocated economic and social reform and was essentially anti-industrial. It had a strong influence on the arts in Europe until it was displaced by Modernism in the 1930s, and its influence continued among craft makers, designers, and town planners long afterwards.
sold
Austrian Jugenstil
~ Brass Box ~
Ca. 1900
Wonderful in its unique Jugenstil style and semi-spherical design, this stunning repose hand-hammered brass box with cover was made in Austria (probably, Vienna), circa 1900. Unmarked. Excellent condition with only minor signs of usage. Would make a gorgeous addition to any collection!
Dimensions:
Height: 6 1/2 inches Diameter: 5 3/4 inches
Austrian Jugendstil
The Austrian Jugendstil differs dramatically in style from the other European styles. Vienna was the heart of an independent movement. In contrast to the floral patterns and shapes of the French artist Charles Plumet a special unique style was developed in Vienna.; clear lines were introduced into architecture (Adolf Loos: Villa Steiner/ House at Michaelerplatz; Otto Wagner: Vienna`s City Railway/ Post Office and Interior in Vienna) as it was also introduced into furniture design (Josef Hoffmann, Kolo Moser). The Vienna artists joined together with writer Hermann Bahr, the painter Gustav Klimt and the architect Otto Wagner to form the „Wiener Secession“. Artistic disciplines were not separated from each other in Jugendstil, but flowed together. The artists endeavored to complete a "Gesamtkunstwerk" (total art work). They brought their Avant Garde ideas into all fields of art and daily life: Literature – Music – Painting – Architectur – Furniture design – Cloth weaving – Wallpaper – Lighting – Jewelry – Cutlery – Glass – Heating systems. Their appreciation of details in their work is expressed in the use of: Faceted Glass, decorative and ornamented wood and metalwork.
$850
American Arts & Crafts
Lacquered Brass and Bronze
~ Jewelry Tray ~
Ca. 1900
This beautiful terracotta-color lacquered brass jewelry tray with bronze handle in the form of a leaf is tastefully decorated with a patinated bronze handle in form of a branch and miniature turtle and a fly. Unmarked.
Dimensions:
Length: 9 3/4 inches Width: 3 1/8 inches
The Arts and Crafts Movement
The Arts and Crafts movement emerged during the late Victorian period in England, the most industrialized country in the world at that time. Anxieties about industrial life fueled a positive revaluation of handcraftsmanship and pre-capitalist forms of culture and society. Arts and Crafts designers sought to improve standards of decorative design, believed to have been debased by mechanization, and to create environments in which beautiful and fine workmanship governed. The Arts and Crafts movement did not promote a particular style, but it did advocate reform as part of its philosophy and instigated a critique of industrial labor; as modern machines replaced workers, Arts and Crafts proponents called for an end to the division of labor and advanced the designer as craftsman.
sold
American Arts & Crafts
~ Vase ~
Ca. 1900-1910
This is a stunning hand-crafted Art Nouveau/Arts & Crafts Era (Circa 1900-1910) double-handled vase, constructed of beautiful, richly patinated copper. The vase has not been polished, in order to preserve its natural, aged beauty. Unmarked, but exceptional. Though it is around 100 years old, it is nearly perfect, having only some very light bumps here and there, absolutely not affecting the beauty of this historic pieces.
Dimensions:
Height: 16 inches Diameter: 8 inches Base diameter: 6 inches
The Arts and Crafts Movement
The Arts and Crafts movement emerged during the late Victorian period in England, the most industrialized country in the world at that time. Anxieties about industrial life fueled a positive revaluation of handcraftsmanship and pre-capitalist forms of culture and society. Arts and Crafts designers sought to improve standards of decorative design, believed to have been debased by mechanization, and to create environments in which beautiful and fine workmanship governed. The Arts and Crafts movement did not promote a particular style, but it did advocate reform as part of its philosophy and instigated a critique of industrial labor; as modern machines replaced workers, Arts and Crafts proponents called for an end to the division of labor and advanced the designer as craftsman.
$250
GERMAN JUGENSTIL
WMF
~ A Pair of Challises ~
Ca. 1910
Dimensions:
Height: 10 7/8 inches Top diameter: 4 7/8 inches Bottom diameter: 5 inches
This pair of challises is a rare example of the famous WMF early Jugenstil objects, famous among collectors for their unique style and an unusual combination of materials - in this case, copper and wood. The bottom is marked with a beehive stamp with a running ostrich in the middle. As this particular early mark was introduced in 1909 and y mark was in use only up to 1914, we estimate the approximate year of the production, as 1910.
WMF
Originally Würtemburgische Machin Fabrik AG, WMF was originally founded in 1853 in Geislingen an der Steige, Germany. In 1880 there was an amalgamation of Straub & Sohn and A Ritter & Co. and the factory became famous for domestic and art metal ware with an appropriate change of name to Würtemburgische Metallwaren Fabrik AG. A variety of marks have been used during their 150 years of production. The well known 'ostrich' mark originates from the German word for ostrich, 'Der Strauss' after Daniel Straub, one of the founders. The 'G' in the mark stands for the town of Geislingen, on the River Fils and near Ulm in Baden-Württemburg.
$1,400
French Art Nouveau
Hand-Hammered Copper, Wood & Leather
~ FLOWER Vase ~
Ca. 1900
Dimensions: 19-1/2″ high x 6" wide (max.) x 2-5/8" dia. (top)
Circa 1900, this striking, tall & elegant French Art Nouveau flower vase made out of wood, hand-hammered copper and leather; its narrow top encrusted with four round art-glass cabochons. The unusual shape of the vase with a narrow elongated neck perfectly matches the contours of the couple of swans, quietly floating on a pond. There is an original zinc insert.