Roycroft Candlestick

Emerging in reaction to industrialization and mass production, the Arts and Crafts movement celebrated handcrafted design as a part of daily life. The history of Arts and Crafts furniture has roots in 1860s England with an emphasis on natural motifs and simple flourishes like mosaics and carvings. This work is characterized by plain construction that showcases the hand of the artisan.

The earliest American Arts and Crafts furniture dates back to the start of the 20th century. Designers working in this style in the United States initially looked to ideas put forth by The Craftsman, a magazine published by Wisconsin native Gustav Stickley, a furniture maker and founder of the Craftsman style. Stickley’s furniture was practical and largely free of ornament. His Craftsman style drew on French Art Nouveau as well as the work he encountered on his travels in England. There, the leading designers of the Arts and Crafts movement included William Morris, who revived historical techniques such as embroidery and printed fabrics in his furnishings, and Charles Voysey, whose minimal approach was in contrast to the ornamentation favored in the Victorian era.

American Arts and Crafts work would come to involve a range of influences unified by an elevation of traditional craftsmanship. The furniture was often built from sturdy woods like oak and mahogany while featuring details such as inlaid metal, tooled leather and ceramic tiles. The style in the United States was led by Stickley, whose clean-lined chairs and benches showcased the grain of the wood, and furniture maker Charles Rohlfs, who was informed by international influences like East Asian and French Art Nouveau design.

Hubs in America included several utopian communities such as Rose Valley in Pennsylvania and the Byrdcliffe Arts and Crafts Colony in New York, where craftspeople made furniture that prioritized function over any decoration. Their work would influence designers and architects including Frank Lloyd Wright, who built some of the most elegant and iconic structures in the United States and likewise embraced a thoughtful use of materials in his furniture.

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Vintage, new and antique candlesticks and candleholders do not simply infuse a dining room with a soft, warm glow. They also add dimension, conjure drama and draw attention to a table or mantel. Despite their practical origins, today, decorative candlesticks and their holders elevate spaces by matching interiors or adding color and bold shapes.

For those who enjoy the rich pageantry of the Old Masters, candlesticks in the Baroque and Rococo styles offer intricacy and opulence. The design of Baroque candlesticks — thanks to the influence of the Catholic Church — often boasted complex shapes and featured biblical figures. While bronze candlestick holders have a long history dating back to the ancient world, many 17th-century candlesticks were made of luxurious silver. Armed with a disposable income and a desire to show off their status, the newly emerging middle class acquired candlestick holders as intricate art pieces, beautiful and opulent in their own right.

The Art Deco movement of the early 20th century saw candlesticks designed with simplicity and symmetry in mind. Art Deco candlesticks boast all manner of forms, ranging from sleek curves to bodies of ribbed crystal or bronze that take the shape of animals.

While some 20th-century-era candlesticks are akin to statues in their grandeur, these decorative items became especially fashionable in the mid-20th century for atmospherically illuminating dinner tables. Mid-century modern candlesticks frequently epitomize the streamlined functionality that we’ve come to associate with the era.

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