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.
Pair Napoleon III Aesthetic Ormolu Naturalistic Lizard Compotes/ Tazza
By Christofle
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of Napoleon III Aesthetic Ormolu Naturalistic Lizard Compotes/Tazza—in the Style of Christofle France, Circa 1875 This exquisite pair of Napoleon III period ormolu compotes (ta...
Ormolu
WMF Silverplate Modernist Plate Sigrid Kupetz Design with Small Oval Bowl
By WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in Ottawa, Ontario
WMF silver plate modernist plate Sigrid Kupetz design with small oval bowl, both by Wurttembergische Metallwarenfabrik, mid-20th century. The plate is ...
Silver Plate
Three-Piece French Enamelled Glass Garniture, Attributed to Baccarat
Located in Montreal, QC
This garniture is painted with birds and flowers on a pale blue ground. The oblong footed bowl has a shaped gilt rim ,with white jewelling and centering palmettes. The flanking vases...
Opaline Glass
Pair of 19th Century Bronze and Ormolu Tazzas
Located in London, GB
A small pair of early 19th century bronze and ormolu tazzas, having elegant scroll handles, above turned stems, raised on sienna marble plinth bases with ...
Bronze
WMF Art Nouveau Plate
By WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in Vienna, AT
WMF Art Nouveau plate silver plated brass Germany about 1900-1910
Silver Plate, Brass
$12,850Sale Price|31% Off
H 34.75 in W 14.5 in D 12.5 in
A French 19th Century Napoleon III Sévres Style Porcelain and Ormolu Mounted Urn
By Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A very fine French 19th Century Napoleon III Sévres Style Porcelain and Ormolu Mounted Covered Urn, the 360 degree painted urn centered with an 18th century scene of a young Princess...
Ormolu
$495
H 1.75 in W 18.25 in D 13.5 in
Large Barker Ellis Oval Bowl with Menorah Hallmark Silverplate, Early 20th c
Located in valatie, NY
Large Barker Ellis Silverplated Oval Bowl with Menorah Hallmark. Barker Ellis silver, Birmingham England, manufacturer of silver, silver plate and electroplated ware date back to 1801, it is now one of the oldest silversmiths and electroplaters in Birmingham. Trent Antiques has been a respected name in antiques for...
Silver Plate
Art Deco WMF Silver-Plated and Glass Cocktail Shaker
By WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in Waddinxveen, ZH
This chic bar accessory is made by the renowned manufacturer WMF. The shaker is in a very good condition. The shaker has a removable cap and strainer. It is marked underside the cap ...
Silver Plate
$2,995 / set
H 15.75 in W 6.5 in D 7 in
Pair of Art Nouveau Silver Plated Vases with Stylized Female Figures
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
This matched pair of silver plated vases each depicting a stylized robed female with outstretched arms were mostly likely made in France, although are unmarked. The arms function as ...
Silver Plate
WMF Art Nouveau Jugendstil Tea Service and Trey
By WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in Sarasota, FL
WMF WURTTEMBERGISCHE METALLWARENFABRIK Art Nouveau Jugendstil tea and coffee service with the tray. All pieces marked with the WMF ostrich mark, G for Geslingen city of manufacture, ...
Silver Plate
$4,475
H 22.25 in W 8.75 in D 9 in
WMF Art Deco Sculptural Silverplate Centerpiece w/ Geometric & Foliate Motifs
By WMF Ikora
Located in New York, NY
This elegant Art Deco silverplate center piece was realized by the esteemed atelier of WMF Ikora in Germany circa 1925. Resembling a stylized Adrestia, or ancient Greek ship...
Silver Plate
$29,703
H 61.01 in W 39.01 in D 16.01 in
WMF Rare Art Nouveau Silver Plated Cutlery Set for 24 Persons
By WMF Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik
Located in London, GB
An extremely rare WMF silver plated cutlery set for 18 persons, comprising approximately 256 pieces. Housed in its original Art Nouveau cabinet with silver plated organic stylised mounts, this remarkable ensemble retains the complete original Art Nouveau cutlery...
Silver Plate
French Cut Crystal And Ormolu Compote
Located in Norwood, NJ
A refined French cut crystal compote mounted in gilt bronze (ormolu), marked “Made in France,” executed in a Neoclassical taste with Empire Revival influence. The bowl features deepl...
Crystal, Bronze
$3,028Sale Price / set|55% Off
H 13.98 in Dm 5.12 in
Pair of Crystal Vases Attributed to Baccarat, France, Circa 1920
By Baccarat
Located in PARIS, FR
Pair of baluster shaped vases attributed to Baccarat, made in fine cut-crystal, all-over decorated with star and diamond motifs. Mounted at the mouth with a large sterling silver ring...
Crystal, Silver
Napoleon III Cut Crystal and Ormolu Vase
Located in New York, NY
In the early 19th century the typical, but fine flower vase was made of porcelain. The better ones were mounted in gilt bronze. But the most fashionable were of cut crystal and gilt ...
Crystal
Pair of Late 19th Century Hand-Painted and Gilt Urns
Located in Lambertville, NJ
A pair of hand-painted and gilt lidded urns with an Austrian beehive mark on bottom. The unusual robins egg blue background with hand-painted allegorical panels on the fronts. The de...
Porcelain