Made for a simple purpose—to store
tea securely—antique wooden caddies come in a variety of ingenious forms, some made to confound would-be thieves, others to amaze.
An American Chorus
Visitors who stop by the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s American Wing will be greeted not only by the exciting, challenging newness of the reinstallation—undertaken to mark the Wing’s hundredth anniversary—but given the opportunity to look beyond surfaces, with the help of two many-voiced audio guides that unravel the foundational myths of American art history object by object.
PASSING FANCIES: What Happened to Curtains? A conversation with textile specialist Natalie F. Larson
Natalie F. Larson owns Historic Textile Reproduction, a company that specializes in producing textiles and custom window treatments for historic preservation projects undertaken by federal agencies and private collectors.
Exhibitions: Unknown Country
Recently it has seemed as if the only tradition revered in the museum world is the critique of tradition, a cause for score-settling as well as the occasional revelation.
Curious Objects: “Junking” with Ralph Lauren’s Creative Director
In this episode of Curious Objects, host Benjamin Miller chats with photographer, junk collector, and former creative director of Ralph Lauren—Mary Randolph Carter.
Behind Closed Drawers
At the Kravet archive in Woodbury, Long Island, tens of thousands of textile samples from around the world are assiduously catalogued and preserved, serving both as a comprehensive record of sewn, woven, embroidered, and printed design history, and as inspiration for contemporary makers.
Accessions: Horse Sense
The Kimbell Art Museum’s director discusses a fine specimen from George Stubbs’s Mares and Foals series recently added to the collection.
Exhibitions: White Line Moderne
Upon her death in 1956, a portion of the work and personal ephemera of American artist Blanche Lazzell was sent to the Art Museum of West Virginia University (AMWVU) in Morgantown: brightly colored paintings and prints, along with charcoal drawings, personal diaries, and letters to her family and friends.
Best in Glass
Two longtime friends and colleagues in their passion for American decorative arts discuss a major acquisition to mark the hundredth anniversary of the founding of the Met’s American Wing.
Jewelry: Family Jewels
In the mid-twentieth century Italian designer Aloisia Rucellai remade antique adornments to meet modern standards of taste.