While many people consider the 18th Century the high water mark of design—the age of science, enlightenment and democracy—I seem to take a contrarian view. In terms of architecture, painting and the decorative arts, the 18th Century is my least favorite period I like what came before it (The Classical, Romanesque, Gothic, Elizabethan, Jacobean and Renaissance) […]
Beautifully modeled and crisply cast, these cast iron bookends capture the pitching and swaying of a Viking ship as it sets-out across roiling seas. Adventurous and romantic—in an old world way— these bookends might inspire a youngster’s dream of adventure (or an adult’s memory of youthful dreams of adventure). These bookends are just a part […]
We continue our introduction of recently-acquired bookends with a trip to the American Prairie. The bookends above, cast in iron in the 1930’s, show an American Bison surveying his domain from atop a bluff. Vast herds of these beasts once roamed the American West; imagine the trembling ground, the rising dust, and the deafening roar […]
We’ve recently purchased a nice collection of vintage bookends which can now be seen in-store. Over the next few days we’ll show some of them here in the journal. They’ll also be added to the on-line shop as we are able to clean, price, and photograph them. The pair above, cast in bronze, show an […]
Today’s the day! For one, the sun enters LEO, making today the first day of that (glorious) sun sign. Secondly, today marks the one year anniversary of our new, improved website (which you’re looking at). And three, it’s my birthday! The lion above, emerging from his jungle hideaway, is part of pair of “Wildcats” bookends […]
On this day in 1926, Irwin Allen Ginsberg was born in Newark, NJ. Precocious, an ideologue, and facile with words, the teenaged boy would write letters to the New York Times on the hot topics of the day: World War II and Labor issues. At Columbia University, Allen befriended a group of like-minded men—Lucien Carr, […]
I’ve just received a collection of new (vintage) bookends: elephants, horses, and dogs—like the cast iron Terriers, pictured above. Made in the late 1920’s, they capture nicely the square muzzle, wiry coat, and the alert stance of the popular sporting dog. They stand atop an Art Deco base and stand ready to hold-up your collection […]
When I was a boy, growing-up in Hawaii, my father would commemorate Boys’ Day each 5 May by running two Japanese carp flags up the flagpole—a big red and white one (for me) and a smaller black and white one (for my younger brother). Boys’ Day! It made me feel so important! I am (a […]
On this day in 1789, at about noon, a spiffy George Washington emerged from his New York City home. He lived at One Cherry Street, near the East River. He was dressed in a dark brown (American made!) wool suit, white silk stockings, and a dark red overcoat. Light glinted off the shiney silver buckles […]
Today is the International Day for Monuments and Sites, established by UNESCO in 1983. It’s a day on which humanity’s cultural diversity (and its vulnerability) is promoted, protected and conserved. Though we often don’t think about it, monuments and cultural sites teach us the history of the world’s human experiences. Such places transmit the values, […]
Presidents’ Day—originally called Washington’s Birthday—used to be celebrated on the first president’s actual birthday, 22 February. Today, now re-named, it is celebrated on the third Monday in February. LEO Design will be open from noon until 8:00 pm. The bookends above, made in the late 1920’s or 1930’s, were modeled after the Lincoln Memorial sculpture […]
On this day in 1809, a boy was born in a one-room log cabin at Sinking Spring Farm, Hodgenville, Kentucky. From such a modest beginning arose one of America’s greatest heroes—and, possibly, history’s most-popular president. 78 years later, before a crowd of 10,000 onlookers, Abraham Lincoln’s only grandson (and namesake) helped to unveil a statue […]
On this day in 1789, the Electoral College named George Washington the first president of the United States under its new Constitution. The actual voting took place from 15 December 1788 to 10 January 1789. Washington ran unopposed and won all of the Electoral votes, the only president ever to win 100% of the votes. […]
Last night I saw the wonderful Broadway production of “Twelfe Night” starring the always-perfect Mark Rylance (who is not just an amazing artist but a one-time recipient of a LEO Design gift!). As timing would have it, I’ve just acquired the bronze-clad bookends shown above. Click on the photo to learn more about them. And […]
Another recent acquisition is this pair of handsome, Art Deco Horse Head bookends. Cast of heavy, solid glass, they really provide a stately end-cap to your library collection. Keep them on desk, bookshelf, or credenza—or, place them atop your mantle piece. Please stop-by the shop to see them in person—along with a lot more newly-acquired […]
I’ve also found some interesting bookends on this most-recent trip. Shown here, a pair of cast spelter elephants, contentedly reading “The Times.” Come into the shop to see them in person—and the rest of our recent acquisitions.
A pair of bronze-clad Shakespeare bookends are amongst my recent acquisitions this week. Made in New York in the 1920’s, they are a handsome representation of England’s most famous wordsmith. Please come into the shop to see them. They should be ready-for-sale by New Year’s Eve. Of course, many other newly-purchased treasures will be available, […]
These two elephant chaps, sit reading The Times. Are they horrified or amused by what they read? They are part of my latest acquisitions, found while traveling in “The Near Mid-West.” Come into the shop to see them—they should be ready for sale New Year’s Eve—or find them in the on-line shop in a week […]
Another new find: this pair of French Art Deco spelter squirrel bookends. I found them in the south of England, perched atop their marble plinths, just as you see them here. Click on the photo above to learn more about them. More new items in days to come…
All Hallows’ Eve—also called “Hallowe’en”—is celebrated each year on the night before “All Hallows’ Day” (or “All Saints’ Day”). The noun “hallow” refers to a “holy or consecrated person,” and “Hallowe’en” is a contraction or “Hallows” and “Eve.” The origin of the holiday is thought to be a Christianized version of an older, Pagan Celtic […]
I seem to have tapped a nautical vein on my most recent buying trip—to the Midwest, of all places! Here’s a pair of highly-sculptural, cast iron bookends, the ship’s prow plunging into the roiling sea before it. One can almost feel the motion. Click on the photo to learn more about them.
The pelican has a long and interesting history in folklore and symbolism. The Ancient Egyptians associated the bird closely with death, the afterlife, and as a mode of transport from one world to the next. In other ancient mythology, it was believed that, during times of famine, a mother pelican would strike her breast—thus drawing […]
The year was 1918 and World War I was underway. U.S. Army corporal Lee Duncan was sent ahead to the French village of Flirey, recently-cleared of German occupiers, to find a suitable air landing strip. What he found was a bombed and abandoned German kennel, recently used to provide dogs for the German military. Most of the […]
Happy Birthday, Harvard! On this day in 1636, Harvard University was founded by order of the Massachusetts legislature, making it the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. It is arguably the most prestigious school in America and amongst the most important in the world. Named after its first benefactor, John Harvard (an […]
Summer’s end is nigh, the dog days come and gone. But it’s been cool in LEO Design where these French Art Deco Great Dane bookends wait patiently. Come visit them and see our new shipments—arriving in mid-September. Click on the photo to learn more.
Lions are among the most-widely used creatures in heraldry. After all, “The King of the Forest” is associated closely with royalty and—for centuries—we have invested him with the traits we wish to see in our leaders (royal or otherwise): strength, bravery, majesty, beauty, beneficence. Lions often are viewed as strong and gentle—at the same time—something […]
