Decorative Art, ERT-GIO

People appreciate the usefulness of things like glassware and furniture, but they appreciate such objects even more when they’re aesthetically pleasing, too. That’s where decorative art comes in. Explore the world of basketry, metalwork, pottery, interior design, tapestry, and more.
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Decorative Art Encyclopedia Articles By Title

Erté
Erté was a fashion illustrator of the 1920s and creator of visual spectacle for French music-hall revues. His designs......
escutcheon
escutcheon, in furniture design, an armorial shield sometimes applied to the centre of pediments on pieces of fine......
etched glass
etched glass, type of glassware whose decorative design has been cut into the surface by the corrosive action of......
Eulenkrüg
Eulenkrüg, south German mid-16th-century owl jugs. Few examples of this early faience are known, and they range......
Euphronios
Euphronios was one of the most celebrated Greek painters and potters of his time. He experimented with new ideas,......
Excelsior diamond
Excelsior diamond, until the discovery of the Cullinan diamond in 1905, the world’s largest-known uncut diamond.......
Exekias
Exekias was a Greek potter and painter who, with the Amasis Painter, is considered the finest and most original......
Eṣfahān carpet
Eṣfahān carpet, floor covering handwoven in Eṣfahān (Isfahan), a city of central Iran that became the capital under......
Fabergé egg
Fabergé egg, any of a series of decorative eggs containing objets d’art that were made by Peter Carl Fabergé’s......
Fabergé, Peter Carl
Peter Carl Fabergé was one of the greatest goldsmiths, jewelers, and designers in Western decorative arts and jeweler......
facet
facet, flat, polished surface on a cut gemstone, usually with three or four sides. The widest part of a faceted......
Factor, Max
Max Factor was the dean of Hollywood makeup experts. He was a pioneer in developing makeup specifically for motion-picture......
Faenza majolica
Faenza majolica, tin-glazed earthenware produced in the city of Faenza in the Emilia district of Italy from the......
faience
faience, tin-glazed earthenware made in France, Germany, Spain, and Scandinavia. It is distinguished from tin-glazed......
faience blanche
faience blanche, (French: “white faience”), type of French pottery of the late 16th and early 17th centuries; it......
faience fine
faience fine, fine white English lead-glazed earthenware, or creamware, imported into France from about 1730 onward.......
faience parlante
faience parlante, (French: “talking faience”), in French pottery, popular utilitarian 18th-century earthenware,......
faience patriotique
faience patriotique, French 18th-century earthenware, chiefly plates and jugs, decorated with themes drawn from......
faldstool
faldstool, a folding stool used by a Roman Catholic bishop when not occupying his throne in his own cathedral church,......
famille rose
famille rose, group of Chinese porcelain wares characterized by decoration painted in opaque overglaze rose colours,......
famille verte
famille verte, group of Chinese porcelain wares characterized by decoration painted in a colour range that includes......
fan
fan, in the decorative arts, a rigid or folding handheld device used throughout the world since ancient times for......
fangyi
fangyi, type of Chinese bronze vessel in the form of a small hut or granary. Square or rectangular in section,......
farthingale
farthingale, underskirt expanded by a series of circular hoops that increase in diameter from the waist down to......
farthingale chair
farthingale chair, armless chair with a wide seat covered in high-quality fabric and fitted with a cushion; the......
fasces
fasces, insignia of official authority in ancient Rome. The name derives from the plural form of the Latin fascis......
fascia
fascia, In architecture, a continuous flat band or molding parallel to the surface that it ornaments and either......
fast fashion
fast fashion, a term describing the rapid production of inexpensive, low-quality clothing that often mimics popular......
façon de Venise
façon de Venise, (French: “Venetian fashion”), style of glass made in the 16th and 17th centuries at places other......
featherwork
featherwork, decorative use of ornamental feathers, especially the feather mosaic needlework of Victorian England.......
Ferahan carpet
Ferahan carpet, handwoven floor covering from the Farāhān district, northeast of Arāk in western Iran, produced......
fibula
fibula, brooch, or pin, originally used in Greek and Roman dress for fastening garments. The fibula developed in......
Fieseler, Gerhard
Gerhard Fieseler was a pioneering German aviator, aerobatic flyer, and aircraft designer. At the outbreak of World......
filet lace
filet lace, (from French filet, “network”), knotted netting, either square or diamond mesh, that has been stretched......
filigree
filigree, delicate, lacelike ornamental openwork composed of intertwined wire threads of gold or silver, widely......
fillet
fillet, (from Latin filum, “thread”), in architecture, the characteristically rectangular or square ribbonlike......
filling
filling, in woven fabrics, the widthwise, or horizontal, yarns carried over and under the warp, or lengthwise,......
Finiguerra, Maso
Maso Finiguerra was a Renaissance goldsmith, engraver, draftsman, and designer, known for his work in niello, a......
fire
fire, in gems, rapidly changing flashes of colour seen in some gems, such as diamonds. Some minerals show dispersion;......
Fisherman’s Ring
Fisherman’s Ring, the signet ring that is presented to the pope—the leader of the Roman Catholic Church—at his......
flag
flag, a piece of cloth, bunting, or similar material displaying the insignia of a sovereign state, a community,......
Flag (1954–55)
Flag (1954–55), encaustic, oil, and collage painting on wood panel that was created in 1954–55 by American artist......
flannel
flannel, fabric made in plain or twill weave, usually with carded yarns. It is napped, most often on both sides,......
Flaxman, John
John Flaxman was an English sculptor, illustrator, and designer, a leading artist of the Neoclassical style in......
fleur-de-lis
fleur-de-lis, stylized emblem or device much used in ornamentation and, particularly, in heraldry, long associated......
floor covering
floor covering, material made from textiles, felts, resins, rubber, or other natural or man-made substances applied......
Florentine diamond
Florentine diamond, clear, pale-yellow stone weighing 137 carats; of Indian origin, it was cut as a double rose......
flying shuttle
flying shuttle, Machine that represented an important step toward automatic weaving. It was invented by John Kay......
folly
folly, (from French folie, “foolishness”), also called Eyecatcher, in architecture, a costly, generally nonfunctional......
footbinding
footbinding, cultural practice, existing in China from the 10th century until the establishment of the Peoples......
Ford, Tom
Tom Ford is an American fashion designer and film director who was credited with reviving the fashion house Gucci......
fountain
fountain, in landscape architecture, an issue of water controlled or contained primarily for purposes of decoration,......
Fouquet, Jean
Jean Fouquet was a preeminent French painter of the 15th century. Little is known of Fouquet’s early life, but......
Fournier, Pierre-Simon
Pierre-Simon Fournier was a French engraver and typefounder particularly noted for decorative typographic ornaments......
frame design
frame design, decorative treatment of frames for mirrors and pictures. Before the 15th century in Europe, frames......
fret
fret, in decorative art and architecture, any one of several types of running or repeated ornament, consisting......
Frisian carving
Frisian carving, in decorative arts, lightly carved ornamentation on furniture made by the Pennsylvania Germans,......
fu
fu, type of Chinese bronze vessel used as a food container, it was produced largely from the middle Zhou period......
fundamiji
fundamiji, in Japanese lacquerwork, variation of the jimaki technique. In this kind of ground decoration, a thick......
Fusṭāṭ ware
Fusṭāṭ ware, in Islāmic ceramics, style of pottery originating from al-Fusṭāṭ (now part of Cairo), where, however,......
Gabo, Naum
Naum Gabo was a pioneering Constructivist sculptor who used materials such as glass, plastic, and metal and created......
Gaines, Joanna
Joanna Gaines is an American entrepreneur and decorator who founded (2003) with her husband, Chip Gaines, the lifestyle......
Gainsborough chair
Gainsborough chair, type of English armchair made in the mid-18th century. A wide chair with a high back, it was......
Gallé, Émile
Émile Gallé was a celebrated French designer and pioneer in technical innovations in glass. He was a leading initiator......
Garamond, Claude
Claude Garamond was a French type designer and publisher. Garamond was apprenticed about 1510 to Antoine Augerau......
garden
garden, Plot of ground where herbs, fruits, flowers, vegetables, or trees are cultivated. The earliest surviving......
garden carpet
garden carpet, floor covering designed as a Persian garden seen from directly above. The design consists of a central......
garland
garland, a band, or chain, of flowers, foliage, and leaves; it may be joined at the ends to form a circle (wreath),......
garnet
garnet, any member of a group of common silicate minerals that have similar crystal structures and chemical compositions.......
gateleg table
gateleg table, type of table first used in England in the 16th century. The top had a fixed section and one or......
Gates of Paradise
Gates of Paradise, the pair of gilded bronze doors (1425–52) designed by the sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti for the......
gauze
gauze, light, open-weave fabric made of cotton when used for surgical dressings and of silk and other fibers when......
gazebo
gazebo, lookout or belvedere in the form of a turret, cupola, or garden house set on a height to give an extensive......
Ge kiln
Ge kiln, kiln known for the wares it produced during the early Song dynasty (960–1162), probably in the Zhejiang......
Gehry, Frank
Frank Gehry is a Canadian American architect and designer whose original, sculptural, often audacious work won......
Geissler, Heinrich
Heinrich Geissler was a German glassblower for whom the Geissler (mercury) pump and the Geissler tube are named.......
Gemma Augustea
Gemma Augustea, sardonyx cameo depicting the apotheosis of Augustus. He is seated next to the goddess Roma, and......
gemmail
gemmail, in stained glass, technique employing fused layers of coloured glass fragments illuminated from behind,......
gemstone
gemstone, any of various minerals highly prized for beauty, durability, and rarity. A few noncrystalline materials......
Genje carpet
Genje carpet, floor covering handwoven in Azerbaijan in or near the city of Gäncä (also spelled Gendje or Gänjä;......
Genoese lace
Genoese lace, bobbin lace made at Genoa, Italy, from the second half of the 16th century; it developed from the......
Georgian style
Georgian style, the various styles in the architecture, interior design, and decorative arts of Britain during......
Germain, François-Thomas
François-Thomas Germain was the last of the distinguished Germain family of Parisian silversmiths. He took over......
Germain, Pierre
Pierre Germain was the first notable member of a distinguished family of Parisian silversmiths. Germain was the......
Germain, Thomas
Thomas Germain was a French silversmith, perhaps the best-known member of a distinguished family of silversmiths.......
Getty Museum, J. Paul
J. Paul Getty Museum, museum and research centre established by oil tycoon J. Paul Getty as a home for his collections......
ghaṭa-pallava
ghaṭa-pallava, in Indian art, important decorative motif consisting of a pot filled with flowers and leaves. In......
Ghent-Bruges school
Ghent-Bruges school, group of manuscript illuminators and scribes active during the last quarter of the 15th and......
Ghiordes carpet
Ghiordes carpet, floor covering handwoven in the town of Ghiordes (Gördes), northeast of İzmir in western Anatolia......
Gibbons, Grinling
Grinling Gibbons was a British wood-carver known for his decorative woodwork and for much stone ornamentation at......
gigaku mask
gigaku mask, stylized wooden mask worn by participants in gigaku, a type of Japanese dance drama. Gigaku masks......
gilding
gilding, the art of decorating the whole or parts of wood, metal, plaster, glass, or other objects with gold in......
Gill, Eric
Eric Gill was a British sculptor, engraver, typographic designer, and writer, especially known for his elegantly......
Gillot, Claude
Claude Gillot was a French painter, engraver, and theatrical designer best known as the master of the great painter......
Gimson, Ernest
Ernest Gimson was an English designer of furniture, one of the Cotswold school of designers who sought to combine......
gingham
gingham, plain-woven fabric, originally made completely of cotton fibres but later also of man-made fibres, which......
Giotto
Giotto was the most important Italian painter of the 14th century, whose works point to the innovations of the......

Decorative Art Encyclopedia Articles By Title