Desk Calendars, Looking Back...

The 2016 desk calendar from Parvum Opus... How the time has flown!

As our new calendar for the coming year is flying out the door (I'm impressed at how organized our clientele is, as always-- I won't start my own holiday shopping for quite some time!), I'm feeling nostalgic for all of the beautiful objets d'art that I've had the privilege to study and paint over the last five years. Here, starting with the new batch, is a little trip down memory lane...

The paintings for 2016 include beautiful objects from all over the world, and spanning thousands of years in age. Click here to learn more.

The paintings for 2015-- that tea caddy in the top row is one of my personal favorites:

And here are the motifs from 2014:

 And 2013:

And lastly, 2012:

We actually began producing calendars on a very small scale for friends and family in 2010, but sadly, those images have been lost. Even still, it's lovely to look back through five years' worth of these small jewels and think of all the hours happily spent minutely observing these beautiful treasures of the decorative arts. We certainly hope that all of you who have purchased calendars for yourselves and as gifts will find them beautiful and useful throughout the coming year!

Parvum Opus desk calendars are available for purchase as a boxed set, refill folio, or simply the cards and easels 'a la carte'. We invite you to visit The Parvum Opus Shop to learn more.

For the Love of "Useless" Art

A detail of an 18th century French porcelain vase from the Sèvres Manufactory, designed by Jean-Claude Chambellan Duplessis (1699 — 1774) and featured in Luke Syson's January 2014 TED talk. Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Those of us who love and collect decorative arts objects know that simply seeing and engaging with them can bring a great deal of satisfaction into our daily lives. But what draws us into certain classes of objects and repels us from others? How do we define quality and beauty in a time in which simplicity and elegance are the rule?

Today I'd like to share a brilliant TED talk given by Luke Syson, the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Curator in Charge of the Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. He takes us along on a (hilarious) journey from repulsion, to familiarity, to acceptance, and finally to admiration of the Sèvres vase you see above. Most interesting to me was his thesis that in our Modernist culture, fancy or imagination has been sequestered into our screen lives while everyday objects have become more and more unremarkable, leaving little space for "useless" objects in modern life. 

There is much to think about here, but I hope most of all that you'll be lucky enough to find yourselves on a journey similar to Luke Syson's, with a fancy pink elephant of your own opening the door to the appreciation of another...and another... 

Objects of Vertu, No. 1: Universe in a Box

Astronomical Compendium by Christopher Schissler, 1561
from the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum
Leather case dimensions: approx. 9cm diameter, 2.4 cm tall

 

Today we begin a series on objects of vertu, the very finest pieces in decorative arts history. The object of our affection today is a fantastic Astronomical Compendium made by Christopher Schissler in 1561, signed on the outside wall:  'CHRISTOPHORVS SCHISSLER FACIEBAT AVGVSTA VINDELICORVM ANNO DOMINI 1561' (Christopher Schissler made this in Augsburg in the year 1561). This compendium is part of the permanent collection (medieval and renaissance) of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Schissler was born in 1531 and set up his own workshops in Augsburg in the 1550s.

According to the V&A: "This compendium was made by one of the most celebrated scientific instrument makers of the 16th century. Christopher Schissler's workshop was famous in his own time. He supplied precision instruments of exquisite quality including globes, astrolabes, sundials, armillary spheres, astronomical compendia and surveying and drawing equipment. Schissler's clientele was international. Many of his dials are laid out for English or Italian latitudes. In 1571 Schissler travelled to the Dresden court of August I, the Elector of Saxony, in order to set up and demonstrate his instruments. He also visited in 1583 the court of Emperor Rudolf II in Prague who was well-known for his fascination with clocks. Instrument makers had to be excellent mathematicians, artists, engravers and metalworkers."


A view of the compendium with one of the leaves open

From the V&A Collections Catalog:

 

"Pocket-size astronomical compendia were produced in Augsburg and Nuremberg, southern Germany, from the early 16th century by specialist instrument makers. This one contains the universe in a box! Provided its owner had a basic understanding of mathematics, astronomy, astrology and geography, he or she could use the various dials, tables and maps to plan journeys, predict the time of sunset in many towns in Europe (very useful when travelling), make astrological predictions, measure the heights of stars and configure the positioning of the stars for any time in the past or future.

Instruments were also made as treasury items. By the 1560s, it was fashionable for wealthy gentlemen to have a sound understanding of all branches of learning, from arts and literature to mathematics and the natural sciences. This compendium was not simply a functional timepiece but also a work of art, bought for its craftsmanship and ingenuity. Astronomical compendia were housed alongside automatons, clocks and astrolabes in Scientifica, collections celebrating human ability to control nature. They were designed to impress as well as educate."



A view of the closed compendium

Again, from the V&A's detailed descriptions, we can see just what went into this masterpiece of metalwork and engineering. (At the risk of providing too much information, I include the following to illustrate Schissler's enormous astronomical and mathematical knowledge and skill as a craftsman--all packed tightly into this beautiful piece...)

 

"It has hinged leaves at top and bottom creating 6 surfaces for dials and maps:
Top leaf:
(a) Quadrant for measuring angles and heights with alidade, or revolving index carrying the sights and showing the degrees cut off on the arc of the instrument. The quadrant is surrounded by engraved moresques filled with a black lac.
(b) Map covering much of modern Germany extending west as far as Brussels in Belgium, North to Lubeck, south to Lucerne in Switzerland and east to Krakow in Poland. The place names are orientated so that south is at the top of the map.
Body section:
(a) Sundial for five latitudes with compass in the centre.
(b) Table of latitudes for various places shown on the map and spring drum to hold gnomon taut.
Bottom leaf:
(a) Conversion table for 'equal' and planetary hours.
(b) Various chronomatic tables including one giving phases of the moon according to age.
[Case] Circular red leather case with stamped and gilt decoration of symmetrical flowers and stems. Inside the case are 2 compartments for the weather vane and the tripod plummet stand. On the side is a hinge for lid (the lid has become separated).
[Lid] Circular red leather lid with stamped and gilt decoration of symmetrical flowers and stems. On the side is a loop for the clip on the base (the base has become separated).
[Plummet Stand for Compendium] Tripod plummet stand for astronomical compendium, copper-gilt, engraved with moresques and hinged at top and bottom.
[Weather Vane for Compendium] Weather vane for astronomical compendium, copper-gilt, cast with baluster stem and swivelling top"


A view of the closed compendium and box

Objects of vertu are among the greatest achievements in the decorative arts. Sadly, the they are in our past--time means something different now, and the time necessary to devote one's life to acquiring the skills and patience to create these masterpieces is gone. They belong to a time when human labor and the human experience of time was different to our own. We are now devoted to mastery of a different sort, but whether one could characterize this shift as an evolutionary one remains to be seen: I adore the "Sky View" app on my iPhone, but I am convinced that the lucky owner of this astronomical compendium had a much deeper understanding of the workings of the night sky than I could ever hope to glean from my modern tool.

 

I find this type of object so appealing not only because of its physical virtuosity, but for its connection to extraordinary people who endeavored to continually educate themselves, to understand their place in the world and, indeed, the universe. With all of the extraordinary gadgets contained within this piece, the most miraculous is the romantic humming memory of happy hours spent by its maker on the one hand, its owner on the other, each one deeply engaged with the movements of the earth, the moon and the stars in the sky. With ancestors such as these, perhaps there's hope for us yet.

 

Decorative Arts in Miniature: Queen Mary's Dolls House

The library in Queen Mary's doll's house, with views of one of the many original
literary works created especially for the library.

Sir Edwin Lutyens, the great British architect, said, "Let us devise and design for all time something that will enable further generations to see how a King and Queen of England lived in the twentieth century." Lutyens' goal was not to create a child's plaything, but a showcase for the finest British craftsmanship of the period.

 

Top, an exterior view of the Palladian house and the dining room, above.

 

According to "Queen Mary's Dolls House", by Mary Stewart-Wilson, Lutyens collaborated with 1500 of the finest artists and craftspeople to construct this five-foot-high 40 room mansion, completed in 1924 and now permanently displayed at Windsor Castle.  It was originally intended as a gift in gratitude for the royal family's leadership during the First World War, but it has grown to be an expression of decorative arts practice at its highest level. Every detail of a house fit for royalty has been meticulously reproduced, from marble busts, to suits of armor, to original books in the library, to the finest whiskeys and champagne in the wine cellar.

The marble staircase

The artists who worked on these miniatures created specialized tools to work in the 1:12 scale, producing objects that not only looked but functioned like their full-sized counterparts. Wedgwood provided porcelain dishes, Rolls Royce provided one of the many cars in the garage. There are tiny pots of jam from Tiptree, biscuits from McVitie, original paintings and sculptures.  In the library are a desk clock by Cartier, Swan fountain pens, tiny bottles of blue Stephen's ink, hand-written and illustrated autobiography by J.M. Barrie and original hand-written works by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Rudyard Kipling. Every detail, almost beyond imagination, has been attended to, even the tiny books of matches and Windsor & Newton watercolor paints on the Queen's desk.

The Queen's Suite

Beyond its function as a gift for a beloved monarch, this incredible collection of objects is a time capsule of decorative arts in its many forms, and an expression of the incredibly high regard the public and craftspeople had for their professions. I can't wait to get back to England to spend some quality time appreciating the history, virtuosity and craftsmanship in Queen Mary's doll's house. If you'd like to see more, I've included the following Youtube link for your viewing pleasure- enjoy!

http://youtu.be/y7YjePpdXVQ

Two views of the library