“sunflowers “a 19th Century Aesthetic Movement Framed Charger

“Sunflowers”

A 19^th Century Polychromed Faïence Charger designed with bulging and beaming Sunflowers

On a “Blue Deck” background simulating a trellis

In its original wooden frame decorated with chiseled brass spandrels

Aesthetic Style

Circa 1860

In the manner of Théodore Deck (1823-1891)

Aestheticism, Aesthetic movement is a British artistic and literary current of the last quarter of the nineteenth century, contemporary of symbolism in France and Belgium.

During the mid-19th century, the provocative and sensuous Aesthetic movement threatened to dismantle Britain's fussy, overbearing, and conservative Victorian traditions. More than a fine art movement, Aestheticism penetrated all areas of life - from music and literature to interior design and fashion. At its heart was the desire to create "art for art's sake" and to exalt taste, the pursuit of beauty, and self-expression over moral expectations and restrictive conformity. The freedom of creative expression and sensuality that Aestheticism promoted exhilarated its adherents, but it also made them the object of ridicule among conservative Victorians. Nonetheless, by rejecting art's traditionally didactic obligations and focusing on self-expression, the Aesthetic movement helped set the stage for global, 20th-century modern art.