Thai Benjarong
Vintage 1980s Thai Ming Porcelain
Gold, Enamel
Early 20th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Soup Tureens
Porcelain
Early 20th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Decorative Bowls
Porcelain
Recent Sales
Antique 18th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Decorative Bowls
Ceramic
Antique 17th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Decorative Bowls
Stoneware
Antique 19th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Ceramics
Ceramic
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20th Century Tableware
Sterling Silver
2010s Czech Vases
Blown Glass
Vintage 1940s Italian Chandeliers and Pendants
Murano Glass
Antique Early 1700s Chinese Qing Ceramics
Enamel
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vases
Murano Glass
20th Century Tableware
Sterling Silver
Antique 19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Table Lamps
Ormolu
Antique Late 19th Century French Rococo Revival Decorative Boxes
Porcelain
2010s British Center Tables
Nickel
Early 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Vases
Art Glass
Antique Late 18th Century Great Britain (UK) George III Porcelain
Porcelain
Antique 19th Century French Dinner Plates
Porcelain, Paste
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Vases
Silver, Copper
Antique 1750s German Porcelain
Antique Late 19th Century German Porcelain
Porcelain
20th Century French Porcelain
A Close Look at Aesthetic-movement Furniture
In 1880, polymath designer William Morris declared: “If you want a golden rule that will fit everybody, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” His words encapsulated the Aesthetic Movement, which prized beauty above all and blurred the lines between fine art and the decorative arts, particularly through lavishly crafted furniture pieces.
The Aesthetic Movement, whose major proponents included author Oscar Wilde, flourished from the 1860s to the 1880s and was mostly popular in England and the United States. Design expositions like the 1876 Centennial International Exhibition in Philadelphia, as well as the publishing of how-to books for interior design, helped disseminate Aesthetic Movement bedroom furniture, serveware, coffee tables and other items, especially to the middle class.
The establishment of new art museums, art clubs and a rising passion for collecting at the time contributed to a growing appreciation for art. Morris’s founding of Morris & Co. in 1862 and the commercializing of this “cult of beauty” by the Liberty store in London, starting in the late 19th century, further disseminated the idea of a domestic space that was thoughtfully and floridly designed.
Leading Aesthetic Movement furniture designers included E.W. Godwin, who drew on Japanese influences and whose work reflected a wider enthusiasm for imported East Asian art. British designer Christopher Dresser created textiles, ceramics and more that were also inspired by Japanese decorative art but were representative of additional diverse design sources that ranged from Egypt to Mexico.
The Aesthetic Movement’s eclecticism resulted in dazzling interiors. Japanese fans were positioned on Renaissance-inspired cabinets with brass hardware, while mantels made of rich walnut or finely carved ebonized wood and adorned with painted Minton tiles mingled with cast-iron chairs against a backdrop of floral wallpaper. In 1881, in New York City, stenciled checkerboard motifs and painted floral murals could be found under an opalescent glass chandelier in a luxurious dressing room designed by German émigré cabinetmaker-decorator George Alfred Schastey. Amid the rise of the industrial age, the style’s promotion of art in everyday life would inform the Arts and Crafts Movement and Art Nouveau.
Find a collection of antique Aesthetic Movement seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture and antiques on 1stDibs.