Decorative Art, HäU-KLI

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

Häufebecher
Häufebecher, (German: “stacking cup”), beaker, usually of silver, that is part of a set that can be stacked or......
Höch, Hannah
Hannah Höch was a German artist, the only woman associated with the Berlin Dada group, known for her provocative......
ikebana
ikebana, traditionally, the classical art of Japanese flower arranging; the meaning of the term was later extended......
Ikenobō
Ikenobō, oldest school of floral art in Japan; the term Ikenobō later came to be used loosely to describe any classical......
illuminated manuscript
illuminated manuscript, handwritten book that has been decorated with gold or silver, brilliant colours, or elaborate......
Imari ware
Imari ware, Japanese porcelain made at the Arita kilns in Hizen province. Among the Arita porcelains are white......
incense burner
incense burner, container, generally of bronze or pottery and fitted with a perforated lid, in which incense is......
Indian goods
Indian goods, in 17th- and 18th-century Europe, any of a vast variety of furniture, paper hangings, textiles, paintings,......
Indo-Eṣfahān carpet
Indo-Eṣfahān carpet, type of floor covering ranging from small to extremely large, handmade in India, primarily......
industrial design
industrial design, the design of mass-produced consumer products. Industrial designers, often trained as architects......
industrial diamond
industrial diamond, any diamond that is designated for industrial use, principally as a cutting tool or abrasive.......
inglenook
inglenook, wooden seat or settle built into the space on either side of the wide fireplaces common in 17th-century......
inkstand
inkstand, receptacle for a pen, ink, and other writing accessories. In England such a utensil was called a standish......
inlay
inlay, in the visual arts, any decorative technique used to create an ornamental design, pattern, or scene by inserting......
inro
inro, in Japanese dress, small portable case worn on the girdle. As indicated by the meaning of the word inrō (“vessel......
Insular script
Insular script, in calligraphy, any of several hands that developed in the British Isles after the Roman occupation......
intarsia
intarsia, Form of wood inlay. Italian intarsia, or inlaid mosaic of wood, which probably derived from East Asian......
Irish needle lace
Irish needle lace, lace made with a needle in Ireland from the late 1840s, when the craft was introduced as a famine-relief......
ironstone china
ironstone china, type of stoneware introduced in England early in the 19th century by Staffordshire potters who......
ironwork
ironwork, architectural features of buildings, artwork, utensils, and weapons made of iron. A brief treatment of......
istoriato style
istoriato style, style of pottery decoration, originating about 1500 in Faenza, Italy, and popular throughout the......
italic script
italic script, in calligraphy, script developed by the Italian humanists about 1400 from antique Latin texts and......
Itaya Hazan
Itaya Hazan was a Japanese potter known for his depiction of noble figures and his skill as a colourist. After......
Ive, Jony
Jony Ive is a British industrial designer who, while holding various posts at Apple Inc. (1992–2019), made design......
ivory carving
ivory carving, the carving or shaping of ivory into sculptures, ornaments, and decorative or utilitarian articles.......
jack-o’-lantern
jack-o’-lantern, in American holiday custom, a hollowed-out-pumpkin lantern that is displayed on Halloween. The......
Jacob, Georges
Georges Jacob was the founder of a long line of French furniture makers. He was among the first cabinetmakers in......
Jacquard loom
Jacquard loom, in weaving, device incorporated in special looms to control individual warp yarns. It enabled looms......
jade
jade, either of two tough, compact, typically green gemstones that take a high polish. Both minerals have been......
jadeite
jadeite, gem-quality silicate mineral in the pyroxene family that is one of the two forms of jade (q.v.). The more......
jamdani
jamdani, type of figured muslin characterized by an intricate, elaborate design that constitutes one of the greatest......
Japanese calligraphy
Japanese calligraphy, the fine art of writing as it has been practiced in Japan throughout the ages. The art of......
Japanese garden
Japanese garden, in landscape design, a type of garden whose major design aesthetic is a simple, minimalist natural......
Japanese pottery
Japanese pottery, objects made in Japan from clay and hardened by fire: earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain.......
japanning
japanning, in the decorative arts, process popular in 18th-century Europe for finishing and ornamenting wood, leather,......
jasper
jasper, opaque, fine-grained or dense variety of the silica mineral chert that exhibits various colours. Chiefly......
jasperware
jasperware, type of fine-grained, unglazed stoneware introduced by the English potter Josiah Wedgwood in 1775 as......
jeans
jeans, trousers originally designed in the United States by Levi Strauss in the mid-19th century as durable work......
Jensen, Georg
Georg Jensen was a Danish silversmith and designer who achieved international prominence for his commercial application......
Jensen, Gerrit
Gerrit Jensen was a royal cabinetmaker of Louis XIV-style furniture, who became one of the most fashionable and......
Jenson, Nicolas
Nicolas Jenson was a publisher and printer who developed the roman-style typeface. Apprenticed as a cutter of dies......
Jesuit ware
Jesuit ware, Chinese porcelain decorated with European subject matter and made for export to the West during the......
jet
jet, a dense, fine-grained, compact variety of subbituminous coal, or lignite. It is coal-black in colour and has......
jia
jia, type of ancient Chinese vessel used for holding or heating wine and for pouring wine into the ground during......
jiaguwen
jiaguwen, pictographic script found on oracle bones, it was widely used in divination in the Shang dynasty (c.......
jian
jian, type of ancient Chinese bronze vessel having a large, deep bowl with a heavy rim that is meant to contain......
Jian ware
Jian ware, dark brown or blackish Chinese stoneware made for domestic use chiefly during the Song dynasty (960–1279)......
Johnston, Edward
Edward Johnston was a British teacher of calligraphy who had a widespread influence on 20th-century typography......
joint
joint, in carpentry, junction of two or more members of a framed structure. Joinery, or the making of wooden joints,......
Jolly Roger
Jolly Roger, flag design used by pirates and privateers to frighten the crews of other ships into submission. The......
Jones, Inigo
Inigo Jones was a British painter, architect, and designer who founded the English classical tradition of architecture.......
Jones, Owen
Owen Jones was an English designer, architect, and writer, best known for his standard work treating both Eastern......
Jones, Robert Edmond
Robert Edmond Jones was a U.S. theatrical and motion-picture designer whose imaginative simplification of sets......
Joshaqan rug
Joshaqan rug, floor covering handmade in the village of Joshaqan (Jowsheqān), north of Eṣfahān in central Iran.......
Jubilee diamond
Jubilee diamond, flawless, clear white diamond weighing almost 651 carats in rough form, as it was found in the......
jue
jue, type of ancient Chinese pitcherlike container used for wine and characterized by an elegant and dynamic shape.......
Jugendstil
Jugendstil, artistic style that arose in Germany about the mid-1890s and continued through the first decade of......
Jun kiln
Jun kiln, Chinese kiln known for the stoneware it created during the Northern Song period (960–1126) in Junzhou......
Junayd
Junayd was a painter of miniatures and leading illustrator of the Jalāyirid school. His style, using richly dressed......
Jungfrauenbecher
Jungfrauenbecher, (German: “maiden’s cup”), silver cup shaped like a girl with a wide-spreading skirt (forming......
Jōmon ware
Jōmon ware, Japanese Neolithic pottery dating from approximately 10,500 to roughly 300 bce, depending on the specific......
kaishu
kaishu, in Chinese calligraphy, a stylization of chancery script developed during the period of the Three Kingdoms......
Kakiemon ware
Kakiemon ware, Japanese porcelain made primarily during the Tokugawa period (1603–1867) by the Sakaida family,......
Kamakura-bori
Kamakura-bori, (Japanese: “Kamakura carving”), in Japanese lacquerwork, technique in which designs are carved in......
Kaminaljuyú
Kaminaljuyú, historical centre of the highland Maya, located near modern Guatemala City, Guatemala. The site was......
Kamáres ware
Kamáres ware, style of painted pottery associated with the palace culture that flourished on Crete during the Middle......
kanshitsu
kanshitsu, (Japanese: “dry lacquer”), technique of Japanese sculpture and decorative arts in which a figure or......
kantharos
kantharos, drinking cup in Attic Greek pottery from the period of the red-figure and black-figure styles. The kantharos......
Karabagh rug
Karabagh rug, floor covering handmade in the district of Karabakh (Armenian-controlled Azerbaijan), just north......
Karaja rug
Karaja rug, floor covering handmade in or near the village of Qarājeh (Karaja), in the Qareh Dāgh (Karadagh) region......
Karatsu ware
Karatsu ware, Japanese ceramic ware of Korean origin produced in Kyushu. The actual date of production is thought......
Kashgar rug
Kashgar rug, floor covering handwoven at Kashgar (Kashi) in Chinese Turkistan (now the Uygur Autonomous Region......
kashmir shawl
kashmir shawl, type of woolen shawl woven in Kashmir. According to tradition, the founder of the industry was Zayn-ul-ʿĀbidīn,......
Kawai Kanjirō
Kawai Kanjirō was a potter who sought to combine modern methods of manufacture with traditional Japanese and English......
Kay, John
John Kay was an English machinist and engineer, inventor of the flying shuttle, which was an important step toward......
Kayseri rug
Kayseri rug, floor covering handwoven in or around the city of Kayseri in central Turkey. The best-known rugs from......
Kazakh rug
Kazakh rug, floor covering woven by villagers living in western Azerbaijan and in a number of towns and villages......
keffiyeh
keffiyeh, headdress typically made of cotton and traditionally worn by men in parts of the Middle East. The black-and-white......
Kells, Book of
Book of Kells, illuminated gospel book (MS. A.I. 6; Trinity College Library, Dublin) that is a masterpiece of the......
Kempeneer, Pieter de
Pieter de Kempeneer was a Flemish religious painter and designer of tapestries, chiefly active in Sevilla, Spain,......
Kent, William
William Kent was an English architect, interior designer, landscape gardener, and painter. He was a principal master......
Kepes, Gyorgy
Gyorgy Kepes was a Hungarian-born American painter, designer, photographer, teacher, and writer who had considerable......
Kermān carpet
Kermān carpet, floor covering handwoven in or about the city of Kermān in southern Iran, which has been the origin......
kesi
kesi, Chinese silk tapestry woven in a pictorial design. The designation kesi, which means “cut silk,” derives......
khirqah
khirqah, (Arabic: “rag”), a woolen robe traditionally bestowed by Sufi (Muslim mystic) masters on those who had......
Khorāsān carpet
Khorāsān carpet, handwoven floor covering made in the region of Khorāsān, in northeastern Iran. Herāt carpets are......
Khotan rug
Khotan rug, floor covering handwoven in or about the ancient city of Khotan (Hotan) in the southern Uygur Autonomous......
Ki Seto ware
Ki Seto ware, yellow-toned ceramic ware made from fine, white clay covered with iron-ash glazes in the Mino area......
kilim
kilim, pileless floor covering handwoven in most places where pile rugs are made. The term is applied both generally......
kilt
kilt, knee-length skirtlike garment that is worn by men as a major element of the traditional national garb of......
Kimberley Process
Kimberley Process, a certification scheme, active since 2003, that attempts to halt the trade in so-called blood......
kimkhwāb
kimkhwāb, Indian brocade woven of silk and gold or silver thread. The word kimkhwāb, derived from the Persian,......
kimono
kimono, garment worn by Japanese men and women from the Hakuhō (Early Nara) period (645–710) to the present. Derived......
kintsugi
kintsugi, traditional Japanese technique of repairing ceramics with lacquer and a metal powder that is usually......
kiosk
kiosk, originally, in Islāmic architecture, an open circular pavilion consisting of a roof supported by pillars.......
kirikane
kirikane, in Japanese art, decorative technique used for Buddhist paintings and wooden statues and for lacquerwork.......
Klint, Kaare
Kaare Klint was a Danish architect and celebrated furniture designer who originated the highly influential modern......
klismos
klismos, light, elegant chair developed by the ancient Greeks. Perfected by the 5th century bc and popular throughout......

Decorative Art Encyclopedia Articles By Title