We're spending a few days—during the Dog Days of Summer—sharing a few of our favorite dog-related items, now available on the LEO Design website.
I've always loved the Aesthetic Movement. The crisp, handsome graphics—sometimes with a touch of Asian influence—is the elegant predecessor of both the Art Nouveau and the Art Deco movements. Shown here, a Wedgwood English Aesthetic Movement ceramic plate. The plate "blank" was decorated with a sepia-toned "transfer" pattern—a common manner of applying detailed decoration to ceramics in the Nineteenth Century. It allowed the manufacturer to print the patterns (on paper or film) rather than require each plate to be hand-painted. I have not seen other plates like this one, but I am guessing that the original set of plates may have sported a variety of different dog- (or hunting-) inspired scenes. Click on the photo above to learn more about it.
Though our Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed, LEO Design is still alive and well! Please visit our on-line store where we continue to sell Handsome Gifts (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
We also can be found in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, at The Antique Center of Strabane (www.antiquecenterofstrabane.com).
Or call to arrange to visit our Pittsburgh showroom (by private appointment only). 917-446-4248