Aesthetic Movement Lighting
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.
2010s Mexican Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Clay, Linen
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass
1950s Italian Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass
Early 20th Century American Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
Early 20th Century European Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass, Wire
Mid-20th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Metal, Bronze
2010s Mexican Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Clay, Linen
Late 19th Century Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
1950s Italian Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass
1880s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Iron
Late 19th Century English Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Art Glass
Early 20th Century French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Ceramic
1880s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
2010s German Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
Early 20th Century American Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Art Glass
2010s German Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Ormolu
1950s Italian Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass, Wire
21st Century and Contemporary French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Plaster
21st Century and Contemporary French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Plaster
Late 19th Century Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
19th Century Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze, Other
21st Century and Contemporary American Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Glass
2010s German Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
2010s German Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
2010s German Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Ceramic, Porcelain, Terracotta
Early 20th Century French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Metal
Early 20th Century American Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
1860s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass
21st Century and Contemporary French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Plaster
Mid-20th Century Thai Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Metal, Brass, Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Plaster
Late 19th Century Unknown Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Glass
1870s French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
1880s French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Marble, Bronze
19th Century British Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Terracotta
1980s Italian Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Onyx
1960s French Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Ormolu
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
Early 20th Century Japanese Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze, Enamel
Late 20th Century Italian Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Silk
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
Early 20th Century French Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
Early 19th Century English Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Porcelain, Wood
1930s Italian Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Art Glass
Early 20th Century British Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Brass
1910s Italian Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass
1880s Japanese Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
1880s German Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal, Brass
1970s French Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Ceramic
1950s Spanish Vintage Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Iron
1870s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Stoneware
2010s German Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Crystal
Early 1900s Japanese Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
Early 20th Century Belgian Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Wrought Iron
19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Bronze
Early 20th Century European Aesthetic Movement Lighting
Wrought Iron