The term “Aesthetic Movement”refers to the introduction of art into the production of furniture, metalwork, ceramics, stained glass, textiles, wallpaper, and books (MMA 1986). The Philadelphia Centennial Exposition of 1886 popularizes this artful style which reached its zenith from the mid 1870’s through the mid 1880’s. During these years major decorative firms, like Herter Brothers and Associated Artists, designed lavish interiors that juxtaposed different patterns and surface textures in a palette of colors that are closely related in value and hue. Furniture and interiors used rectilinear lines, “honest” contruction, and ornament that Charles Eastlake recommended in Hints on Household Taste. Ornamentation and design styles were derived from Oriental, Persian, Moorish, Egyptian, classical and medieval sources. |