There are so many beautiful things for sale, each with their own story, that to condense a post into one subject is difficult. So I have a buffet of things today. Just click the picture or link to see more details about each item. In the Sotheby’s Unsold category: On 6 December 2002, this Henri…… Continue Reading
Lalique Hair Combs and Tiaras
Victorian diamond brooches came with different settings, so they could be worn separately or together as a tiara. Art Nouveau brooches could also serve multiple purposes. Indeed, some were designed as a tiara and ended up as a brooch. Such is the case with this bee-and-flower ornament designed by Rene Lalique in 1905/6. A pencil-and-ink…… Continue Reading
The Sarpech of Mughal India
At the First Battle of Panipat, on 21 April 1526, Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur founded the Mughal Dynasty. He was absorbed in the ethos of Persian culture, even through he was a Turkic-Mongol, descending from Genghis Khan on his mother’s side. However, instead of repressing different cultures under its domain, the Mughal Empire accommodated them and…… Continue Reading
Plumes: The Creative Museum at the Musée des Arts d’Afrique et d’Asie
In its second collaboration with the Museum of African and Asian Arts in Vichy, The Creative Museum has been invited to participate in the exhibition, PLUMES. Human fascination with birds begins when their freedom of flight captures our imaginations. We watch birds soar and glide freely, as their beautiful, feathered wings catch gusts of air.…… Continue Reading
The Gold Crowns of Mycenae, Bactria, and Silla
According to archeological finds by Heinrich Schliemann, an elliptical gold diadem with removable crown-ornaments was first discovered in a Mycenaean funerary mound called Grave Circle A, or the “Grave of Women”, c. 1600-1500 BC. from the National Archaeological Museum in Athens The Mycenaeans were an Indo-European people who settled in Southern Greece along the Agean…… Continue Reading
Auguste Bonaz at the Creative Museum
The Creative Museum just acquired another masterpiece by Auguste Bonaz. Made c. 1920 in Oyonnax, five medallions of painted leaves and rhinestones rest in the middle of a curved frame. The medallions are held in place by vertical lines. I thought this might be a good opportunity to peruse some of the Creative Museum’s other…… Continue Reading
Combs at the Musée du Quai Branly
The Musée du Quai Branly is as much a work of architecture as it is a museum that houses a collection of 300,000 artifacts from Africa and Oceania. Jean Nouvel designed four structures with 30 multicolored, protruding cubes. Each cube contains an exhibition. They have a wonderful collection of combs and photographs that show how…… Continue Reading
Rodolphe Dogniaux: l’après-midi d’un peigne
Contemporary designer Rodolphe Dogniaux of Design Matin studied at the École Sainte-Geneviève in Paris, the National School of Applied Arts and Crafts, and the National School of Industrial Creation. After making a career as a freelance designer, he is trying to design the hamburger of the future and re-evaluate the French chestnut. (Sometimes, you just…… Continue Reading
AMNH Collection: Mangbetu Ivory Combs of the Belgian Congo
Ivory hair combs for the American Museum of Natural History were collected on a cultural expedition by Herbert Lang and James P. Chapin from 1909 to 1915. James Chapin and a child, name unknown They were made by the Mangbetu people, who lived in Panga and Medge, small villages in King Leopold II’s Congo Free…… Continue Reading
Victorian Hair Pins
Whether the hairstyle was divided into three or more parts, some short, others long; or, the hair was complexly braided at the back, Victorian women adorned their chignons with tortoiseshell combs and pins. On top of the pins were fantastic gold creations of griffins with ruby eyes, silver so delicately woven it looked like lace,…… Continue Reading
