Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
In 1880, polymath designer William Morris declared: “If you want a golden rule that will fit everybody, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” His words encapsulated the Aesthetic Movement, which prized beauty above all and blurred the lines between fine art and the decorative arts, particularly through lavishly crafted furniture pieces.
The Aesthetic Movement, whose major proponents included author Oscar Wilde, flourished from the 1860s to the 1880s and was mostly popular in England and the United States. Design expositions like the 1876 Centennial International Exhibition in Philadelphia, as well as the publishing of how-to books for interior design, helped disseminate Aesthetic Movement bedroom furniture, serveware, coffee tables and other items, especially to the middle class.
The establishment of new art museums, art clubs and a rising passion for collecting at the time contributed to a growing appreciation for art. Morris’s founding of Morris & Co. in 1862 and the commercializing of this “cult of beauty” by the Liberty store in London, starting in the late 19th century, further disseminated the idea of a domestic space that was thoughtfully and floridly designed.
Leading Aesthetic Movement furniture designers included E.W. Godwin, who drew on Japanese influences and whose work reflected a wider enthusiasm for imported East Asian art. British designer Christopher Dresser created textiles, ceramics and more that were also inspired by Japanese decorative art but were representative of additional diverse design sources that ranged from Egypt to Mexico.
The Aesthetic Movement’s eclecticism resulted in dazzling interiors. Japanese fans were positioned on Renaissance-inspired cabinets with brass hardware, while mantels made of rich walnut or finely carved ebonized wood and adorned with painted Minton tiles mingled with cast-iron chairs against a backdrop of floral wallpaper. In 1881, in New York City, stenciled checkerboard motifs and painted floral murals could be found under an opalescent glass chandelier in a luxurious dressing room designed by German émigré cabinetmaker-decorator George Alfred Schastey. Amid the rise of the industrial age, the style’s promotion of art in everyday life would inform the Arts and Crafts Movement and Art Nouveau.
Find a collection of antique Aesthetic Movement seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture and antiques on 1stDibs.
Early 20th Century French Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Paper
1880s American Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Gold Leaf
19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Bamboo, Giltwood, Lacquer
Early 20th Century English Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Iron
Early 1900s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Brass, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary American Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Wood, Paper
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Paint
Early 20th Century German Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Paper
Late 19th Century British Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Giltwood
19th Century British Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Walnut, Silk
19th Century Spanish Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Bone
Late 19th Century Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Mahogany
1870s Moroccan Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Mother-of-Pearl, Wood
20th Century Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Brass
Early 20th Century American Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Bronze
1990s North American Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Plexiglass, Wood
1860s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Brass
Late 19th Century English Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Walnut
2010s Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Brass
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Marble
1960s American Vintage Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Walnut
Late 20th Century American Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Bamboo
Mid-20th Century European Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Alabaster
Early 20th Century North American Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Iron
Mid-18th Century British Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Other
1810s French Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Silk, Mahogany
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Giltwood
1960s American Vintage Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
20th Century Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Wood
1970s American Vintage Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Mahogany, Glass
Late 19th Century European Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Fabric, Oak
Mid-20th Century American Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Iron
1920s French Vintage Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Canvas, Paint
Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Jade, Brass
1920s French Vintage Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Wood
Early 1900s English Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Walnut
Late 19th Century French Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Wood
Late 19th Century English Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Nutwood
1880s American Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
19th Century European Antique Aesthetic Movement Home Accents
Textile, Wood