Daria Khristova nee Chernenko
Department Director
Lot 143*
A magnificent silver-gilt and shaded cloisonné enamel desk setPavel Ovchinnikov, Moscow, 1908-1917
7 June 2017, 15:00 BST
London, New Bond Street£80,000 - £120,000
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A magnificent silver-gilt and shaded cloisonné enamel desk set
Pavel Ovchinnikov, Moscow, 1908-1917
comprising: an inkstand, inkwell, a blotter and a pair of candlesticks; all enamelled in the Art Nouveau style with stylized scrolling foliage, pine trees and strawberry motifs in vary-coloured shaded enamel in pastel tones of pale pink and blue, light green, and delicate orange against cream white or gilded ground, 84 standard (5)
height of candlesticks: 14.6cm (5 3/4in).
comprising: an inkstand, inkwell, a blotter and a pair of candlesticks; all enamelled in the Art Nouveau style with stylized scrolling foliage, pine trees and strawberry motifs in vary-coloured shaded enamel in pastel tones of pale pink and blue, light green, and delicate orange against cream white or gilded ground, 84 standard (5)
height of candlesticks: 14.6cm (5 3/4in).
Footnotes
Provenance
Chen Collection, Lyon & Turnbull, November 23, 2008, lot 90
Christie's, New York, April 14, 1994, lot 85
Sotheby's, New York, December 13, 1991, lot 73
Christie's, London, April 26, 1989, lot 264.
This unusual desk set is a rare example of the impact of the international Arts and Crafts movement in Russian design. Variously called the Neo-Russian style or the Stil Modern, it can be seen most clearly in architecture and the graphic design of artists like Ivan Bilibin. Under its influence, many Russian silversmiths developed a new pictorial language and color palette for their designs, but few attempted a new approach to form itself. This desk set, with its massive, columnar forms and stylized pine trees and strawberries would have conform perfectly with to the new interiors being designed by architects such as Fedor Shekhtel or Lev Kekushev for Moscow's business elite.