Decorative & Applied Arts

150 Years Of Decorative And Applied Arts have brought forth a plethora of artistic movements and styles that have shaped how we perceive and appreciate art today. From the ornate designs of the Art Nouveau movement to the sleek lines of Art Deco, decorative art reflects society’s values and tastes. On the other hand, applied art has focused on the functionality and practicality of design, with examples ranging from furniture to fashion.

Throughout history, artists have used various mediums to express their creativity, including ceramics, glassware, textiles, and metalwork. The influence of decorative and applied art can be seen in many aspects of our daily lives, from the architecture of buildings to the products we use. As we continue to evolve as a society, so will our appreciation for these art forms.

Traditional Asian artifacts including a blue and white vase, wooden statue, embroidered pouch, and other decorative items on a wooden table.

Decorative Arts in Hong Kong: Craft, Trade and Modern Design

Explore decorative arts in Hong Kong through Chinese export art, jade jewellery, carved furniture, neon signs, textiles, ceramics and contemporary design culture.Read More →

Art Nouveau glass vases and lamps with floral and nature motifs on wooden sideboard

Nancy Art Nouveau Glass: Designers and Manufacturers

Nancy Art Nouveau glass transformed French decorative arts through Émile Gallé, Daum Frères, Jacques Gruber and the École de Nancy.Read More →

Royal Worcester porcelain covered vases dated 1862 with enamel decoration attributed to Thomas Bott Senior

Thomas Bott – Porcelain Painter and Designer at Royal Worcester

Thomas Bott was a notable porcelain painter at Royal Worcester, renowned for developing the Limoges enamel style, significantly influencing Victorian ceramic decoration despite his brief career.Read More →

Pottery tools on a wooden table with clay and ceramic shards

Clay in Ceramics: Composition, Plasticity and Firing Behaviour

Clay in ceramics explained: composition, plasticity, shrinkage, refractory qualities, kaolin and its role in pottery and porcelain design.Read More →

The Golden Buddha as an Encounter with Monumental Decorative Art

The Golden Buddha at Wat Pho offers more than a celebrated religious image. Seen through the lens of decorative art, it becomes an encounter withRead More →

Casa del Sol at Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California, showing Julia Morgan’s Spanish Colonial Revival design with decorative tile, ironwork, stucco walls, and a red clay roof.

California Decorative Arts: Climate, Craft, and Modern Living

California decorative arts form one of the most distinctive regional design traditions in the United States. They are inseparable from climate, landscape, migration, Indigenous knowledge,Read More →

Still life with Art Deco books, blue and white teapot, yellow rose in vase, geometric sculpture, glass of water, and decorative box on marble table

Ornament After the Avant-Garde: Pattern, Surface and Modern Design

The evolution of ornament in modern design illustrates a transition from applied decoration to structural elements, reshaping the narrative around aesthetics and functionality.Read More →

Principal façade and main portal of the 1902 Turin Exhibition of Modern Decorative Art, designed by Raimondo D’Aronco in Art Nouveau style

Two Principles of Modern Decorative Art: Crane’s Warning Against Fashionable Novelty

Walter Crane’s modern decorative art theory, set out after his visit to the Turin exhibition of 1902, remains one of the clearest Arts and CraftsRead More →

Colorful building with columns, arches, clock tower, and variously shaped windows and roofs

Supermannerism: Complexity, Contradiction, and the Rebirth of Ornament in Late 20th-Century Design

Supermannerism, a contemporary design critique, embraces ornamental complexity, historical references, and contradiction, challenging Modernist principles while celebrating playful and expressive aesthetics.Read More →

Picturesque landscape with figures and trees illustrating Andrew Jackson Downing’s vision of harmony between architecture and nature

Andrew Jackson Downing (1815–1852): Architect of the American Picturesque Landscape

Introduction Andrew Jackson Downing stands as a pivotal figure in the formation of nineteenth-century American design culture. As a landscape architect, horticulturalist, and influential author,Read More →