Steuben Glass Works Vase, c. 1915 - 29
Morse Museum of American Art
This Arts and Crafts Movement copper and glass vase is about six inches high. Very organic and naturalistic in appearance, the art glass vase borders on Art Nouveau. However, the simple decorative aspects of the copper floriform base with the amber hand-blown bubbly glass insert mark it as totally from the Arts and Crafts Movement.
Stickley Writing Desk, c. 1905
Morse Museum of American Art
This mission-style desk is immediately recognizable as being made by the Stickley Brothers Company. The hallmarks are the quarter sawn oak, mortise and tenon joints and of course the rustic slatted sides. Measuring 36" wide, 23" deep and 35" high with height to writing surface of 30 inches, copies of this iconic style are widely available.
Edward Burne-Jones Leaded Stain Glass Firescreen, c. 1885–96
Morse Museum of American Art
Used to hide the firebox when it wasn’t in use, it is not necessary that firescreens be heat-resistant. It is made from leaded glass and designed by Edward Burne-Jones. This arts and crafts movement artisan was also an accomplished painter and a founding member of the British firm of Morris, Marshall, Faulkner and Company. He was the firm’s principal designer of stained glass.
Following through to the American Arts and Crafts Movement, architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed many interior elements of his structures, including stained glass windows to bring light into his buildings. As an aside, lead for decorative use was almost non-existent during the first part of the twentieth century as it was rationed during World War I.
Robert Riddle Jarvie, Pair of Candlesticks, c. 1901–3
Morse Museum of American Art
Chicagoan Robert Riddle Jarvie had a distinguished second career in metalworking as a designer of candlesticks and holloware as part of the Arts and Crafts Movement. This pair of candlesticks is silver plated bronze. The shaft of stick tapers outward to stepped flat circular base; the top of shaft tapers outward to form tulip-shaped candle socket with turned lip.
Evelyn Marie Stewart’s 1911 article in the Fine Arts Journal states ‘The real arts and crafts offerings are notable always for simplicity, integrity, suitability and a respectful treatment of the materials in hand’. Contemporaneous artists and crafters echo this sentiment bringing these time-tested concepts forward into the present and future.
