Louis Osman Silversmith

Louis Osman was born on January 30, 1914, in Exeter. He was an architect, artist, goldsmith, silversmith and medallist. Very few people matched his creations as a goldsmith and consequently, Osman was chosen to make the crown for the investiture of the Prince of Wales in 1969. Many of his other works are in public collections in the UK and worldwide. After Hele's School in Exeter, he studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture which was part of University College London, in 1931. Osman later attended the Slade School of Art and he left the Bartlett and was awarded the top first and won the Donaldson Medal of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Subsequently, he trained with Sir Albert Richardson. Serving during the Second World War as a Major in the Intelligence Corps, Osman was a specialist in Air Photography and served on the Beach Reconnaissance Committee before the June 1944 Normandy landings. Following the war, he was busy as an architect and worked for Westminster Abbey, Lincoln, Exeter, Ely and Lichfield Cathedrals. During the 1970s, Osman and his wife lived at Canons Ashby House in Northamptonshire, which was given to the National Trust in 1981 when he was not able to keep the tenancy any longer. At Canons Ashby, he established a workshop and had a team of silversmiths and goldsmiths working for him. In 1974, he created an exhibition celebrated by a lavishly illustrated catalog. Osman's 1969 crown for the investiture of the Prince of Wales was on display, together with many other items of his creation and also by other silversmiths such as Malcolm Appleby, Philip Noakes and Stephen Nunn and also acknowledging the work of Desmond Clen-Murphy, Peter Musgrove and Chris Philipson in his works. In 1976, he made the gold enameled casket that holds a copy of the Magna Carta on view in the United States Capitol, Washington, DC. Osman died on April 11, 1996.

The first decades of the 20th century were a period of artistic upheaval, with modern art movements including Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Dadaism questioning centuries of traditional views of what art should be. Using abstraction, experimental forms and interdisciplinary techniques, painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and performance artists all pushed the boundaries of creative expression.

Major exhibitions, like the 1913 Armory Show in New York City — also known as the “International Exhibition of Modern Art,” in which works like the radically angular Nude Descending a Staircase by Marcel Duchamp caused a sensation — challenged the perspective of viewers and critics and heralded the arrival of modern art in the United States. But the movement’s revolutionary spirit took shape in the 19th century.

The Industrial Revolution, which ushered in new technology and cultural conditions across the world, transformed art from something mostly commissioned by the wealthy or the church to work that responded to personal experiences. The Impressionist style emerged in 1860s France with artists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Edgar Degas quickly painting works that captured moments of light and urban life. Around the same time in England, the Pre-Raphaelites, like Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, borrowed from late medieval and early Renaissance art to imbue their art with symbolism and modern ideas of beauty.

Emerging from this disruption of the artistic status quo, modern art went further in rejecting conventions and embracing innovation. The bold legacy of leading modern artists Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Piet Mondrian and many others continues to inform visual culture today.

Find a collection of modern paintings, sculptures, prints and other fine art on 1stDibs.

Revitalize your interiors — introduce drawings and watercolor paintings to your home to evoke emotions, stir conversation and show off your personality and elevated taste.

Drawing is often considered one of the world’s oldest art forms, with historians pointing to cave art as evidence. In fact, a cave in South Africa, home to Stone Age–era artists, houses artwork that is believed to be around 73,000 years old. It has indeed been argued that cave walls were the canvases for early watercolorists as well as for landscape painters in general, who endeavor to depict and elevate natural scenery through their works of art.

The supplies and methods used by artists and illustrators to create drawings and paintings have evolved over the years, and so too have the intentions. Artists can use their drawing and painting talents to observe and capture a moment, to explore or communicate ideas and convey or evoke emotion. No matter if an artist is working in charcoal or in watercolor and has chosen to portray the marvels of the pure human form, to create realistic depictions of animals in their natural habitats or perhaps to forge a new path that references the long history of abstract visual art, adding a drawing or watercolor painting to your living room or dining room that speaks to you will in turn speak to your guests and conjure stimulating energy in your space.

When you introduce a new piece of art into a common area of your home — a figurative painting by Italian watercolorist Mino Maccari or a colorful still life, such as a detailed botanical work by Deborah Eddy — you’re bringing in textures that can add visual weight to your interior design. You’ll also be creating a much-needed focal point that can instantly guide an eye toward a designated space, particularly in a room that sees a lot of foot traffic.

When you’re shopping for new visual art, whether it’s for your apartment or weekend house, remember to choose something that resonates. It doesn’t always need to make you happy, but you should at least enjoy its energy. On 1stDibs, browse a wide-ranging collection of drawings and watercolor paintings and find out how to arrange wall art when you’re ready to hang your new works.