Prototype tray
Designer Eliel Saarinen American
Manufacturer International Silver Co., Wilcox Silver Plate Co. Division, Meriden, Connecticut
Not on view
An internationally renowned architect and designer, Saarinen immigrated to America in 1923 and settled in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, in 1925. He designed this prototype tray, part of a larger tea service (see MMA 1999.27.1a-c-.5), in the early 1930s for use in his Michigan home. The sophisticated design relies on geometric forms, with fine proportions offsetting austere decoration. Saarinen insisted on brass plating for his personal pieces because the color appears warm, while the International Silver Company produced a limited commercial run of the design in less expensive, cooler-looking silver plate.