Folk Art Decorative Objects

A maritime architectural element of painted and carved wood representing Neptune.

Magnificent iron man sculpture. Consists of saw blades as arms, a crumpled bucket as head with a tractor seat as its main body. Two skinny square iron legs keep it all upright and ar...

Uniquely created macrame´ zebra with exceptional detailing and incredible sculptural quality. The shape of this amazing sculpture is created from welded, heavy-gauge wire as is seen ...

Rare wood carving of child holding a book.

An early 19th century French carved bantam sporting a crown, well carved in pine. Good detailing to face, plumage, tail feathers and feet. Possibly originally from a ring toss game...

An unusual Indian carved yellow stone bowl in the form of a yoni, 19th century or earlier, India. Carved from a yellow sandstone, what might be described as Jaisalmer yellow today, ...

This is a rare mid-century 5 arm Candlebra. By listed artist Mary Grabill. Terra-cotta with a white glaze. About the artist: In the mid-40's Mary turned the family's backyard ...

A fine, small Tramp Art picture frame. With a crazed, flat gold paint or wash. Found in a Pennsylvania estate. Simply a wonderful piece of ...

Early 20th Century Unusual Plaster Puppet Head An unusual object to say the least, we feel this item was made in the early to mid-20th century. Constructed of Wood, plaster with gl...

Made from found industrial objects, this face takes on different looks at every angle. A wedge, sprockets, gears are adhered to a found painted steel plate to complete this "Flatlay Face" Jim Rose Flatlay Face No. 05, 2021 found industrial objects 4.50h x 10.75w x 10.75d in 11.43h x 27.30w x 27.30d cm JR0299 Jim Rose b. 1966, d. 2023 Bio Born in Indiana, Jim Rose lived in Europe until he returned to the United States to attend college. After one year at Bard College, Jim transferred to the School of the Art Institute in Chicago (SAIC) where he graduated in 1988 with a BFA. His skillful interpretation of the Shaker design is a result of intense research and field study of Shaker furniture, architecture, culture and history. After over two decades of dedicated work, he has mastered the minimalism of the Shaker technique and created his own unique visual vernacular. The quilts of Gee's Bend have become a monumental influence taking this artist's work to new levels of unique interpretation and artistry. His selection of aged steel results in a patina directly related to that of aged wood while his colored strips beautifully mimic worn cloth. Each piece of furniture is masterfully made and intended for daily use. Jim Rose’s steel furniture is featured every year at SOFA Chicago for the past 25 years. Jim Rose b. 1966, Wisconsin Education 1989 B.F.A., Sculpture, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, IL 1988 Student at Large, Welding Technology, Triton College, Chicago, IL 1985 Undergraduate Photography Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York Awards 2008 Wisconsin Arts Board Fellowship Award, Madison, WI. 2005 Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize, Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA 2003 Grant Recipient for Shaker Interpretations in Cast Iron, PA Arts Assoc / WI Arts Board 2003 Arts/Industry Residency Program for Visual Artists, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, Wisconsin Solo Exhibitions 2017 New Work, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI 2012 Simply Steel, Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, WI 2007 Variation, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2003 New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2001 Shaker in Steel / New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2000 Shaker in Steel / New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1999 Hands and Heart to Steel III, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL National Exhibitions 2017-2018 SOFA Chicago – Gallery Victor Armendariz 2016 - 1995 SOFA Chicago, New York, Palm Beach - Ann Nathan Gallery 2011 - 2002 Art Chicago - Ann Nathan Gallery Group Exhibitions 2017 Coming Attractions: Inaugural Exhibition, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2017 Living with Art: The Newman Collection, 108 Contemporary, Tulsa, Oklahoma 2016 Form Follows Function: The Intersection of Art and Craft, The Hardy Gallery, Ephraim, Wi 2015 NEO, Chipstone Foundation, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI 2015 ICFF, Furniture Society, Javits Convention Center, New York City, NY 2013 Vahki Revisited, The Enduring Spirit of a Craft Collection” Mesa Contemporary Arts, Mesa, AZ 2013 Fearless Furniture, Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Indianapolis, IN 2013 Inaugural Exhibition, Museum Wisconsin of Art, West Bend, WI 2012 Sitting Pretty: Furniture from RAM’s Collection, Racine Art Museum, WI 2011 Hiding Places: Memory in the Arts, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, WI 2010 Living with Art, Strohl Art Center, Chautauqua Institution, NY 2009 Summer in Wisconsin, Tory Folliard Gallery, Milwaukee, WI 2009 High Honors, James Watrous Gallery, Madison, WI 2008 Second Lives: Remixing the Ordinary, Museum of Art and Design, NY 2007 Transformation 5: Contemporary Works in Found Materials, Art Association, Jackson, WY 2007 Transformation 5: Contemporary Works in Found Materials, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston, TX (traveling exhibition) 2006 Show us Your Drawers, Herron School of Art, Indianapolis, IN 2006 Marriage of the Minds, Fairfield Center for Contemporary Art, Sturgeon Bay, WI 2006 27th Annual Contemporary Crafts, Mesa Contemporary Arts, Mesa, AZ 2006 Containers of All Dimensions, Mesa Contemporary Arts, Mesa, AZ 2005 Transformation 5: Contemporary Works in Found Materials, Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA 2004 Right at Home: American Studio Furniture, Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C. 2004 American Collections, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI 2004 More Than Drawers-Wisconsin Cabinets, Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, WI 2004 Objects of Wonder, John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygan, WI 2003 Planting, Potting and Pruning, Wustum Museum of Fine Art, Racine, WI 2003 Men at Work, Miller Art Museum, Sturgeon Bay, WI 2002 Case Pieces: Contemporary Studio Furniture, Elvehjem Museum of Art, Univ of WI-Madison 2002 Sitting Pretty: Contemporary Wisconsin Chairs, Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, WI 2001 Anything with a Drawer - Award Recipient, Mesa Arts Center, Mesa, AZ 2001 23rd Annual Contemporary Crafts - Award Recipient, Mesa Arts Center, Mesa, AZ 2000 New Talent in Craft, Wustum Museum of Fine Art, Racine, Wisconsin 2000 Who Knows Where or When, Wustum Museum of Fine Art, Racine, Wisconsin 1999 The End is Near! Artists look at the 20th Century, Wustum Museum of Fine Art, Racine, WI Selected collections Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C. Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin Mesa Contemporary Arts, Mesa, Arizona The Museum of Arts and Design, New York, New York John Michael Kohler Art Center, Sheboygan, Wisconsin Kohler Company, Kohler, Wisconsin Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Arkansas Arts Center, Little Rock, Arkansas Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Indianapolis, Indiana The Chipstone Foundation, Fox Point, Wisconsin Museum of Wisconsin Art, West Bend, Wisconsin Publications “Selected Artists of Door County” Stonehill Publishing, 2016 “Galvanized Chest” Door County Living Magazine, Autumn 2012 “100 Artists of the Midwest” Schiffer Books, 2012 “Piecework” American Craft Magazine, February 2012 “Hiding Places, Memory in the Arts” John Michael Kohler Arts Center, June 2011 “Second Lives, Remixing the Ordinary” Museum of Arts and Design, NY, August 2008 “Studio Furniture” Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, DC, May 2008 “Discoveries by Designers” Architectural Digest, December 2005 “Contemporary Metal Furniture” Metalsmith Magazine, Winter 2003 “Studio Case Furniture: The Inside Story” American Craft Magazine, October 2002 “Contemporary Studio Case Furniture: The Inside Story” Elvehjem Museum of Art, 2002 “Chicago Style...

A Swedish oakwood box, dated 1783 and carved with the initial of the girl that received it as a gift (CSD). Most probably as bridal gift from her family. ...

Richly textured with whimsical appeal, this late 20th century wooden crow is a delightful example of naive American sculpture. Poised mid-caw, it is hard to tell whether this crow ha...

Introducing a heart-warming abstract sculpture depicting parents with a child in embrace. Hand-carved in solid marble by a Kenyan artisan this exquisite, petite sculpture is the perf...

A wood bowl with metal repair produced in Sweden, 19th century.

Beautiful decorative terracotta ceramic bowl (Lebrillo) glazed in white and green Spanish Fajalauza from the mid-20th century, made and hand-painted, in this case with its characteri...

Large antique pine box in folk art from Sweden. The box is a measurement to measure volume and is made by hand in pine. It has never been painted an...

A large pair of shell encrusted pedestal candle holders. Made of resin, grout, and shells. handcrafted circa 1970s-1980s.

A found object is a natural or man-made item, or fragment of an item that is found by an artist and kept because of some intrinsic interest the artist sees in it. Beginning with Picasso, who incorporated newspapers and matchboxes into his cubist collages and constructions, this idea has been carried forward. It was popular with the Dada and Surrealist movements and with such great artists as Damien Hurst and Henry Moore. Here, self-taught artist Rick Farrell...

A Swedish sculpture of wooden, carved and painted figures of potato farmers working in the Scandinavian fields. Sweden has a long and well known tradition of hand carved wooden folk ...

A wooden carved cat or Panther. This previously painted piece, or piece of wood, has the remnants of a yellow paint, and the markings of a cat. A compliment to any shelf or table ...

A glazed ceramic bottle, depicting a hunter standing on top of a pointer dog. Made in France between 1950 and 1960, a wealth of charming detail lends verisimilitude to the absurd sce...

A great basket in excellent condition made by Sherwin Porter Boyer (1907-1964). Made with oak staves and carved oak handle that is attached with brass ears. The basket bears Boyers s...

Antique cast iron lamb doorstop.

High glazed, finely modeled bone china with exquisite colors. One of designer, Leslie Harradine finest Royal Doulton firgurines, "The Mendicant" (1929...

Large scale folk art style tin owl sculpture with a painted patina. Attached to a wooden base to ensure that the sculpture is stable.

Terracotta monkey holding a glazed fig, the symbol of fertility, Majorca, circa 1950.

A hand-carved sculpture in sandstone styled after the head of DIRACCA from an unknown artist in Spain, circa 1940. This piece is stylized and attributed to Diracca from Spain in 1940...

Hand-carved owl sculpture of hardwood - perfectly carved and finished to a rich lustrous sheen. Perfect for any shelf as a focal point or added to books and art.

Unique vodka crate, holds 24 bottles. The text "VALSTS DEGVINA RIGAS NOLIKTAVA" printed front and back means "STATE VODKA RIGA WAREHOUSE". These cases were used to distribute vodka a...

freaky, spooky yet whimsical carved and painted model of a late 19th century/turn of the century institutional building, possibly a sanitorium. Painted windows and carved chimneys w...