Orchidées

ca. 1898

Not on view

Art Nouveau ceramics, produced from around 1880 to 1914, the start of World War I, encompassed a variety of different styles and influences, including national historicism, nature, symbolism, and an interest in Japanese culture. The period’s diverse practitioners were driven by the search for new forms that responded to the sweeping social, cultural, economic and artistic changes wrought by industrialization at the end of the nineteenth century and the advent of World War I.

Philippe Wolfers, along with his brothers Max and Robert, led Wolfers, one of the most important Art Nouveau jewelry businesses in Brussels. Though he specialized in silver designs, Wolfers also created ceramic forms, having initially trained as a sculptor at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in the Belgian capital. Both his works in silver and ceramics reflect his interest in naturalistic floral forms.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Orchidées
Designer: Philippe Wolfers (Belgian, 1858–1929)
Manufactory: Emile Muller and Co. (founded 1854)
Date: ca. 1898
Culture: French, Ivry
Medium: Glazed stoneware
Dimensions: confirmed: 10 × 5 5/8 × 5 1/2 in. (25.4 × 14.3 × 14 cm)
Classification: Ceramics-Pottery
Credit Line: Gift of Martin Eidelberg, 2024
Object Number: 2024.450.4
Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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