Decorative Art and Design

Thomas Molesworth

This #BrantDesign post features the work of Thomas Molesworth (1890-1977), one of the most prominent American cowboy style furniture makers. During his time at the Chicago Arts Institute, Molesworth was influenced by the Adirondack style, the Arts & Crafts movement, and the Art Deco movement, but what would ultimately become the basis for his style was the crudely made, functional type of furniture made by the cowboys of the American West. Molesworth used a variety of materials and techniques to achieve his iconic and refined style. From burled wood to half-pole trim, brass tacks and hide shades, colorful leathers and the incorporation of Navajo and Chimayo weavings; Molesworth furniture captures the essence of the American West in a variety of decorative arts objects ranging from furniture to lighting. Paired with his work are Navajo blankets from the late 19th century, and an Andy Warhol portrait of American Jockey Willie Shoemaker. #andywarhol #thomasmolesworth

Ettore Sottsass and Marco Zanini

This #BrantDesign post focuses on the Donau Desk, a collaborative piece between designers Ettore Sottsass and Marco Zanini, and produced by Franz Leitner. Its sleek wooden body sits upon four vibrant pink metal legs, typical of Sottsass’s Memphis design style. With his background in industrial design and as the founder of the Memphis Group, the Donau Desk is exemplary of Sottsass’s attention to design history as well as the playfulness within his furniture and design objects. Hidden within its lustrous shell, the desk opens like a secretary or drop front desk exposing a series of compartments, shelves, and a writing surface.  Above the desk is Roy Lichtenstein’s iconic 1962 drawing for “The Kiss.” #ettoresottsass #roylichtenstein

Herter Brothers

This #BrantDesign post features works by the Herter Brothers who were considered top designers of the Aesthetic movement in America. The ebonized side chair and library table, with gold gilding and marquetry of flowers are exemplary of high-end design from this time period. The copper and brass table lamp is by William Arthur Smith Benson, an innovator of lighting design who focused on material, form, and function. The lamp features a shade of overlapping patinated copper plates, meant to diffuse, but also effectively reflect light.  To its right, is a silver enamel and turquoise picture frame and a desk set with a blotter, scale, and jars designed by Archibald Knox for Liberty and Co., a company which played a large role in the development of both the Aesthetic and Arts and Crafts movements in England. Above the desk is Karen Kilimnik’s “Ian Playing Soldier” (1997), from the collection of @stephanieseymour, which was featured in the 2012 solo exhibition of Kilimnik’s work at The Brant Foundation Art Study Center in Greenwich.

Jean-Baptiste Dubuc

This #brantdesign post features a George Washington Mantel Clock by the Parisian clockmaker Jean-Baptiste Dubuc. This clock is one of the many examples of how European artisans after the revolution began to make objects intended for the new American market. Depicting an eagle which doubles as an American, but also Roman military symbol, the clock in true neoclassical form is portraying Washington in the likeness of the acclaimed Roman citizen-soldier Cincinnatus.  Supporting the clock is a demilune mahogany card table made by the English born cabinetmakers John and Thomas Seymour of John Seymour & Sons, whose workshop was located in Creek Square, Boston. The table is in a Hepplewhite style and includes a delicate inlaid bellflower motif in the frieze and legs.  The clock is flanked by two “electric” blue candlesticks produced by the Sandwich Glass Factory on Cape Cod, Massachusetts founded by Deming Jarvis, once a member of the New England Glass Company. The works are backed by a vibrant toile wallpaper and the painting above titled “The Castle Great Staircase, Scotland” (2007) is by Philadelphia native Karen Kilimnik. #thebrantfoundation #karenkilimnik

George III Stone Sphinxes

This design post features a pair of George III carved stone sphinxes located on the grounds of the Brant family home. Depicted in a Louis XIV Mannerist style, these stone carved sphinxes are classic renderings of the fabled creatures that for centuries stood as guardians for palaces, temples, and tombs. Each statue features a sphinx wearing a headdress with decorative foliage. Often shown with the head of a human, body of a lioness, and sometimes with wings, the sphinx saw a revival during the European Renaissance and Neoclassical movement where artists visually reimagined its form and retold stories such as the tale of Oedipus besting the sphinx by solving its riddle and freeing the city of Thebes.

A related Sphinx can be found on the Adams bridge of Compton Verney, Warwickshire, and countless examples can be found in museums and private collections worldwide.

#brantdesign #sphinx #brantfoundation

Guest Post: Francesco Clemente

Remembering Henry's Show

Marc Newson's Lockheed Lounge

This #BrantDesign post features Marc Newson’s (b. 1963) iconic Lockheed Lounge.  This remarkable object simultaneously encapsulates fine art and industrial design, reflecting Newson’s level of precision and unique creativity in the 1980’s furniture design movements.  The result is an unusual, other-worldly structure revered for its fusion of materials, design, and form.

Marc Newson, Lockheed Lounge (1988)

Christopher Wool, Fuckem (1992)

Photography: Tom Powel Imaging, Inc.

Jean Prouvé, Carlo Mollino, Line Vautrin

This striking aluminum porthole door was designed by renowned metal worker and self-taught architect Jean Prouvé circa 1949 – a signature element in his post-WWII mass-production housing concept. Flanking the doorway, Carlo Mollino’s chairs embody functionality and the female form, while epitomizing Mollino’s style: the union of the romantic and the rational. The extraordinary “Folie” mirror, created by jewelry and decorative object designer Line Vautrin, presents a sun with twelve irregular flames haphazardly extending outward, one in particular supporting a tiny, witch mirrored glass “moon.” The asymmetrical bordure inside the mirror mimics the Prouvé portholes, while the black talosel flames balance the black Mollino chair to the left.

Jean Prouvé, Door (1949)

Carlo Mollino, Important side chair (1959) painted beech, painted brass

Carlo Mollino, “Tipo B” side chair (1950) Resinflex, brass, tibular brass.

Line Vautrin, “Folie” mirror (circa 1958)

Elizabeth Peyton, “John Lennon 1965 (Hotel),” 1995

Photography: Sean Keenan

In celebration of Father’s Day, this design post highlights the formal dining room which was originally designed with the assistance of Jed Johnson in the early 1980’s.

The beautiful American sideboard from the 1880’s was a housewarming gift given to Peter Brant by his father Murray Brant. The sideboard and accompanying dining set was chosen by Peter and had belonged to Robert W. de Forest, the fifth president of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. De Forest and his wife Emily, were great collectors of Americana and conceived the idea to build a wing at The Met that would house a permanent collection of American decorative objects. The Museum’s American Wing opened to the public in 1924.

18th Century Chinese Wallpaper: This wallpaper inspired Karen Kilimnik’s chinoiserie installation for her 2012 exhibition at The Brant Foundation. 

Various silver horse racing trophies

“Red Elvis” (1962) by Andy Warhol

Photography: Tom Powel Imaging, Inc.

To celebrate the beginning of summer, our first post features objects collected by Stephanie and Peter Brant for their seaside home.