Category Archives: DecorativeArts

There is Nothing Harder at Task for Haida the Mask

Posted on October 21, 2017 by

Among the Haida people from the Pacific Northwest of North America existed secret religious societies that performed dances in which they wore wooden masks or carried wooden puppets that represented gagid, or the spirits of the forest. A  gagid mask … Continue reading →

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Truly “Chihuly”: The Beauty is in the Eye of the Glass Beholder

Posted on September 29, 2017 by

Both images featured are from an untitled group from the Macchia Series (1982). Dale Chihuly (Born September 20, 1941 in Tacoma, Washington) is an American glass sculptor. In 1960, Chihuly was studying interior design at the University of Washington, Seattle, … Continue reading →

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Viva Vivat Bohmen

Posted on September 15, 2017 by

Above: Vivat Bohmen cup and saucer, supposedly the oldest surviving Bohemian porcelain from  Klášterec nad Ohří (1794). The cup measures 5.6 cm high. Klášterec nad Ohří, was a Bohemian factory founded in 1793, by Mikuláš (Johann Nicolaus) Weber with support from … Continue reading →

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Tennyo “Magokoro” – The Goddess of Sincerity

Posted on August 10, 2017 by

Tennyo “Magokoro” (The Goddess of Sincerity) is a statue constructed by Gengen Sato, who spent more than 10 years at the task after it was commissioned by Mitsukoshi Ltd. Consisting principally of Japanese cypress “Hinoki” about 500 years old that … Continue reading →

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The Lady and the Unicorn

Posted on July 24, 2017 by

The Lady and the Unicorn is the modern title given to a series of six tapestries woven in Flanders from wool and silk, from designs drawn in Paris ca 1500. The tapestries were created in the style of mille-fleurs (meaning: … Continue reading →

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Callooh! Callay! for Calouste is Okay

Posted on June 2, 2017 by

Above: Dragonfly brooch once adorned by Sarah Bernhardt to whom it was lent by friend Calouste Gulbenkian. A corsage ornament which consists of dragonfly with griffon’s paws and green female torso whose face is supposed to be of Sarah herself. … Continue reading →

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Compare the Pair #15: Compare the Chair

Posted on April 7, 2017 by

Left: “Hollow“(2012) fibreglass & paint by Anish Kapoor,  National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. British-Indian sculptor Anish Kapoor was born on 12 March 1954, in Bombay. Kapoor lived and worked in London during the 1970s studying art at the Hornsey College of … Continue reading →

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Far from Ross River Fever

Posted on March 7, 2017 by

Stonemason and Tasmanian convict Daniel Herbert  was baptized on 17 February, 1802, in the Paul Street Independent Chapel, Taunton, Somerset, England; the son of Daniel Herbert, a Corporal in the 6th (Inniskillen) Dragoons. In March 1827, with James Camble and … Continue reading →

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Try Your Luck and Maybe Spend a Buck at the Fryerstown Antique Fair

Posted on January 26, 2017 by

Fryerstown Antique Fair will celebrate its 42nd anniversary in 2017. It is held on the surrounding days of the Australia Day holiday on January 25th each year. The popular annual event has grown from strength to strength each year and … Continue reading →

Posted in Bone China, Ceramics, CigaretteCards, Collectibles, Crystal, Glass, Hard Paste Porcelain, Marbles, Paperweights, Perfume Bottles, Porcelain, Postcards, Sculpture, Snowdomes, Soft paste Porcelain, Stained Glass, Stamps, SwapCards, Tea Towels | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Getting ready for a Christmas Barbie

Posted on December 23, 2016 by

It appears that this Christmas has seen a revival in ‘Ugly Sweaters‘ or ‘Ugly Jumpers‘ that are knitted and have Christmas overtones. Garish in colour and design, they feature the typical ‘Christmas colours’ of green/red/white and can feature snowflake patterns, … Continue reading →

Posted in #Games&Toys, Collectibles, Fabric, QuestionableArt, Sewing, StreetArt, Textiles | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

On Armistice Day – Lest We Forget

Posted on November 14, 2016 by

Above is part of a collection of World War One (WW1) recruitment posters, (A gift by Horace H.J. Roberts). Over 200 Parliamentary Recruiting Committee and Parliamentary War Saving Committee posters were published before the introduction for conscription in January 1916. … Continue reading →

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Natalia Goncharova’s Kingdom Under the Sea

Posted on June 13, 2016 by

(Above: Ballet costume for a seahorse for Serge Diaghilev’s Ballet Russe production of Sadko, ca. 1916 by Natalia Goncharova. Costume: Silk-cotton satin lamé, paint, wire, wadding: cape, 166cm headdress 83 x60 x 25cm). Russian avant-garde artist, painter, costume designer, writer, … Continue reading →

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May the Mather Inlaid Layer Remain a Major Lasting Stayer

Posted on February 17, 2016 by

Scottish-born Australian plein-air painter and etcher John Mather was born in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire in 1849. After studying art at the Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts he migrated to Australia in 1878.  By 1880, Mather was partly responsible … Continue reading →

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Any port in a storm seems a far cry for Ambrogiani’s Le Port

Posted on January 24, 2016 by

French Expressionist painter, print-maker and sculptor Pierre Ambrogiani was born on January 16, 1907 in Ajaccio located on the west coast of the island of Corsica, 210 nautical miles (390 km) southeast of Marseille, France. Ambrogiani is known for his bright colors … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists A-Z, Gallery Art, OilPainting, Paintings, Sculpture, Stained Glass | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Joseph Coteau’s work is as regular as clock-work

Posted on December 28, 2015 by

Joseph Coteau (1740-1801) was a well-respected French enameller who worked on skeleton clocks during the revolutionary period from 1789-1799.  Image depicted (left) shows a gilt and enamelled bronze (chased) marble skeleton clock; (430x250x140cm) Foundation Napoleon Paris. (Donation Lapeyre inv.809). Although Joseph Coteau … Continue reading →

Posted in Artists A-Z, DecorativeArts, Furniture & Furnishings, Gallery Art, Porcelain | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment