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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot)

@miadecorativearts.bsky.social

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Sharing artworks from the Minneapolis Art Institute Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture department. Not associated with the Minneapolis Art Institute. Automated thanks to @andreitr.bsky.social and @botfrens.bsky.social

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 2h

Chocolatière (chocolate pot) collections.artsmia.org/art/6983

silver pot with gold vermeil interior and wood and ivory stirrer
Chocolate pots were frequently used in the early 19th century when chocolate was at its height of popularity. Due to rather primitive refining processes it had to be stirred continously so the rich sediment wouldn't settle. The small hole and sliding cover in the lid accommodated a stirrer (spun between both hands). It was exhibited at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris, but despite what appears to be a worn ivory handle (then considered to be an aesthetic enhancement) the work has never been used.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 5h

Pair of "chrysanthemum" Candelabra collections.artsmia.org/art/1506

This pair of candelabra were either bought by Frank Totton Heffelfinger of Minneapolis, an avid collector of silver, as a gift for his wife, or given to the couple as a wedding present. They are in the Chrysanthemum pattern, first introduced by Tiffany & Co. in the 1880s from designs by Charles T. Grosjean, superintendent of the silverware production for the firm. This pattern was extremely popular and included flatware as well as monumental pieces such as these candelabra.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 6h

Iced tea spoon, from "Classic Column" flatware set collections.artsmia.org/art/106610

top half of handle has fluted concave grooves running length, widening to tip; lower half of handle has smooth round neck, flaring to round spoon
Marion Weeber was an independent American industrial designer who attended the progressive art school run by the Art Students League of New York. She worked for several prestigious firms including Cartier, Ekco, and Samuel Kirk & Son, but eventually opened her own design firm in Manhattan in 1939. She holds over twenty-five patents for her innovative and inventive designs. "Classic Column" is perhaps the most storied of Weeber's fifty-plus flatware designs. It was selected by the U.S. Commission for Design Excellence for the American Pavilion at the 1967 International and Universal Exposition in Montreal. Precise and polished geometric forms reflect an American industrial aesthetic, exemplifying the forward-looking image the United States wished to present to the world.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 23h

Cup and saucer, from "American Modern Play Dishes" set collections.artsmia.org/art/67053

light grey plastic cup with dark grey flecks; green saucer with grey flecks

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Parcel Gilt Spoon, one of four collections.artsmia.org/art/27071

Parcel Gilt Spoon, one of four

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Venus in a Shell I collections.artsmia.org/art/1889

Cast no. 6/ 10; cast in 1931
Venus, the ancient Roman goddess of love and beauty, sits upon a seashell, the traditional symbol of her birth from the waters of the sea. Matisse chose to emphasize a strong vertical accent in this sculpture, creating a pronounced sense of ascendancy that underscores the mythological theme.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

One of twenty-one seals collections.artsmia.org/art/94041

attached on a single string; various semi-precious stones

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Plate collections.artsmia.org/art/111006

plate with partial armorial inscribed, "E P 1677"; armorial has bowl at center top, dragons L and R, face center bottom; flowers and vines around bottom between dragons

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Liquor chest collections.artsmia.org/art/95138

liquor chest,1780-1800, oak bound with iron fittings; lined in paper of black and white design on blue ground; containing six large and six small square decanters with stoppers, each in a compartment; also two wine glasses, one tumbler, one cordial glass in a removable tray; colorless, non-lead glass gilded in foliage designs along shoulders of decanters, stoppers and upper half of glasses; see cat. card for ind. msmsts

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

"Two Towers" mechanical bank collections.artsmia.org/art/81886

rectangular tan building with twin crenulated towers; painted green decoration in the form of edging, shamrocks and raised dots; wooden man between towers with painted face, wearing red and blue with a round hat; man moves on a metal rod

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

"Organ Bank, Boy and Girl" mechanical bank collections.artsmia.org/art/80885

monkey in blue shirt and yellow pants with left leg crossed over right leg sits on raised red seat on top of rectangular box; dancing girl to his proper left side and dancing boy to his proper right side; "ORGAN BANK" below top front edge; design of organ and organic design with music book in between this design on front side; lever on proper right side of box

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Female Figure collections.artsmia.org/art/1633

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Necklace collections.artsmia.org/art/20866

circular; black Belgian marble and silver

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

“Penny Woodens” Tea Set collections.artsmia.org/art/30023

tea set made of creamy colored pottery then glazed; now has crazing; decorated with all wooden Dutch dolls known as Peg Woodens, Penny Woodens or Nurnberg Fille, which had black painted hair and orange or deep pink painted slippers; other colors include brown, red and green; set came in the original box

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Cup and saucer collections.artsmia.org/art/16001

Cup, ceramic, German, XIXc NO DIMS. ON CAT. CARDS

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Theseus Slaying the Centaur Bianor collections.artsmia.org/art/1263

Theseus, one of the great heroes of Greek myth, was asked to attend the wedding of his good friend the king of the Lapiths. The king also invited the neighbors, the half-human, half-horse Centaurs. Big mistake. The Centaurs drank too much wine and tried to kidnap the bride. Theseus quickly stepped in, fighting them off and saving her. This subject appealed to Antoine-Louis Barye, an accomplished sculptor of animals—which he studied at the Paris zoo. Barye displayed his plaster model for the sculpture in Paris in 1850. This version, however, was probably cast in 1891, the year the railroad baron James J. Hill purchased it for his house on Summit Avenue in St. Paul.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Beaker collections.artsmia.org/art/121309

cup with sides flaring very slightly outward; flat bottom; small rim at top; gilt interior and top rim; relief scenes of Mozambique on sides; one side has battle scene with nude figures fighting with bows, staffs and clubs; at right side of scene, one group of three figures and a pair of figures appear to represent aggressors attempting to cut off their opponents' genitals; other side has nude male figure wearing feathered headdress and necklace at right extending his hand to a female figure with long hair in a ponytail wearing a loincloth, accompanied by other figures; woman appears to wear a necklace of male genitals, while two figures at left pick up and carry male genitals; incised double coat of arms surmounted by a crown and palm tree separates two scenes; long engraved inscription on underside
This beaker depicts the battles and warfare of different tribes in Mozambique, as described and imagined by the Dutch merchant Jan Huyghen van Linschoten (1563-1611), who had lived in Goa, India, for six years, and wrote an influential account of his travels through Africa and India. It was made in Leipzig, Germany, which was a center of trade, based on engravings in Jan Huyghen’s book. Such depictions of exotic peoples in faraway places were not always accurate. Here a Mozambiquian chief is pictured as a Native American.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Window, from a set of 12 collections.artsmia.org/art/30921

clear glass panels with 3 circles (blue, yellow and tan streaked with white); rectangles and squares in light blue, turquoise, green, orange and yellow; received mounted in wood frame with 98.256.6.2

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Grave Digger Medal (Kienast 273) collections.artsmia.org/art/26349

obverse, French soldier on broken gravestone juggling skulls

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Plate collections.artsmia.org/art/110650

wide rimmed plate; three figures in a landscape; tall figure on right holding flower; center figure holding (sun?) shade over tall figure; short figure at L; floral motifs around rim and between rim and bottom; geometric design around outer edge of rim

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Dinner Plate from a set for the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo collections.artsmia.org/art/2616

consists of 6 complete place settings, each composed of 7 pieces (cup, saucer, dinner plate, salad plate, bread plate, cereal bowl, fruit bowl); white background with circular motif design in blue, red, yellow and green with black or gold outlines; designed for the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo
The largest commission of Frank Lloyd Wright's long career was the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. Wright created the hotel's entire decorative scheme, including furniture, carpets, a silver coffee service, and this dinner service design for the informal Cabaret Room. The first dinner service design was developed in 1922 and used until 1933. Changes were made several times over the years. These place settings--never actually used in the hotel--were manufactured from the original designs.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

"Popcorn Wagon" still bank collections.artsmia.org/art/90264

metal copper-colored popcorn cart on 4 wheels; popcorn, cold drinks, peanuts stamped on sides; attendant in window; door on back; written on top in black: 'Berkshire County Savings Bank'

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Legends of the New World collections.artsmia.org/art/106751

small flat base; rounded form flares outward to wide rounded shoulder; raised mouth ring; dark brown with tiny whorls at top, with wide golden brown swath
Among the second generation of studio craftsman working in wood, William Hunter has been a significant player in liberating the turned wood vessel from its functional role. Hunt uses exotic, densely grained hardwood--particularly cocobolo, also called retusa--which he then manipulates through a combination of innovative and labor-intensive carving and lathe-turning. Since 1979, the spiral form has dictated much of his work. Initially presented as an enclosed vessel defined by a series of solidly carved flutes, in 1989 Hunter started to open up his vessels by introducing voids. The resulting negative spaces inspired Hunter to name them his "Phantom Vessel" series. The next logical step occurred in the 1990s, when Hunter completely deconstructed his vessels into helixes, or arcs, thus bringing his exploration of the spiral in wood to a dramatic conclusion as purely abstract sculptures.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Electric tea kettle collections.artsmia.org/art/7114

octagonal form with wicker handle
Considered by many to be the first modern industrial designer, Peter Behrens served as artistic adviser to the Berlin General Electrical Company from 1907 to 1914 for which he designed electrical appliances for home use. This electric teakettle was produced in three versions (oval, bulb-shaped, and octagonal). Each was available in three different surface finishes with the heating elements hidden inside.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

"Rumpelstiltskin" still bank collections.artsmia.org/art/82365

seated figure with tall red hat; figure is gold, rotund; coin slot in back

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Soup Bowl from a set for the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo collections.artsmia.org/art/8049

consists of 6 complete place settings, each composed of 7 pieces (cup, saucer, dinner plate, salad plate, bread plate, cereal bowl, fruit bowl); white background with circular motif design in blue, red, yellow and green with black or gold outlines; designed for the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Breakfast dish with warming stand collections.artsmia.org/art/18520

Gadroon mounted with domed covers.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Side plate collections.artsmia.org/art/24022

Wedgwood pearlware partial dessert service, porcelain, printed and colored in green with designs of shells and seaweed, includes thirty-three pieces

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Corner cabinet (Encoignure) collections.artsmia.org/art/22277

This pair of corner cabinets displays characteristics of the early Neoclassical style in their restrained, symmetrical forms, ormolu (gilt-bronze) mounts, and wood veneers, or thin sheets of wood. Jean-Chrysotome Stumpff was originally from southwestern Germany but came to Paris in 1760 and worked in the Rococo and Neoclassical styles. He is best known for his dynamic veneer work employing the natural patterns of the thin sheets of wood to create geometric and floral patterns.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Footed bowl collections.artsmia.org/art/23825

Bowl, footed with applied blue rim

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Art Deco Lamp collections.artsmia.org/art/27980

Art Deco Lamp

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Coffee pot, from a five-piece coffee and tea set collections.artsmia.org/art/3305

tray is designed to resemble an aircraft carrier with a large landing strip sanded into its surface

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Water glass collections.artsmia.org/art/17714

barrel-shaped water glass, etched; Stiegel type

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Bust of a Woman collections.artsmia.org/art/11875

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Wine glass, one of a set of twelve collections.artsmia.org/art/22967

freeblown green glass

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Vase collections.artsmia.org/art/24052

Gold Aurene glass. Surface glass is sprayed at the fire with stannous (tin) chloride or lead chloride solution to create metallic lustrous finish.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Paperweight collections.artsmia.org/art/18204

bouquet; faceted center design small pink flower, white flowers and blue flowers and green leaves

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

"Arabian Safe" still bank collections.artsmia.org/art/90128

block shape, brown; scenes on sides show camel tent on door, camel with rider, building with dome and man on donkey; coin slot at top of building side

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Small Pitcher collections.artsmia.org/art/2403

handled pitcher, glass

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Prior Oval collections.artsmia.org/art/6220

terra cotta colored deep oval vessel with sharply "carved" sides and two "handles"
After fighting in World War II, William Daley attended the Massachusetts School of Art on the G.I. Bill, where he studied with Charles Abbot. Daley graduated in 1950 and went on to earn a master's degree at Columbia University Teachers College in New York. In 1954 he took a teaching position at SUNY (State University of New York) at New Paltz and switched from throwing vessels on a wheel to building them from slabs of clay shaped over molds. Prior Oval exemplifies Daley's slab-building technique, and features intersecting and overlapping geometric shapes that create relationships between negative and positive, and interior and exterior, space. The title Prior Oval evokes the conceptual beginning of the vessel without reference to function. Daley describes himself as a traditional potter, and notes that while pots are useful, they also have been more than just utilitarian for quite some time.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Celery tray collections.artsmia.org/art/13118

ovoid in shape, with flattened long sides; rim at long sides folded partially inward at each side; light blue (glacier blue) glaze

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Hutch still bank collections.artsmia.org/art/90302

carved tall chest or hutch with glass doors; flags painted on wood portions of doors; traces of red paint on edges of doors, top, bottom; back is hinged and opens

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Bowl collections.artsmia.org/art/17780

Bowl, ceramic, Chinese Export XVIIIc cat. card dims H 1-3/4 x diam 9'; listed as 'plate' on cat. cards

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Coffee pot collections.artsmia.org/art/14338

*25.417.76ab cat. card dims H 5-5/8 x diam 2-1/4' Coffee Pot, white ground with gold figures of chinamen; cover, top and bottom of pot fluted. c.1720. Earle Meissen of this type is much valued; made under Herold regime.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Coffee pot collections.artsmia.org/art/14338

*25.417.76ab cat. card dims H 5-5/8 x diam 2-1/4' Coffee Pot, white ground with gold figures of chinamen; cover, top and bottom of pot fluted. c.1720. Earle Meissen of this type is much valued; made under Herold regime.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Mirror on a stand, from a toilette service collections.artsmia.org/art/83723

mirror with relief gold frame with foliage and putti; removable top section with fruit, putti and foliage
During the Baroque era, a lady and her lady-in-waiting could spend hours at the dressing table with soaps, creams, perfumes, brushes, pins, etc. This manner of ceremonial grooming originated in the French court, where the word "toilette" developed from "toile," or cloth, which covered the table. As the ceremony grew more elaborate, so too did the dressing table service that housed these beauty secrets. Surviving correspondence from silversmith himself identifies the elements of this service have been identified as follows: a rectangular mirror; an oval basin; two 'comb boxes,' one featuring Venus and Adonis, one with the Death of Adonis; two powder boxes, one with Phaeton in his chariot, the other with Phaeton falling to Earth; a cylindrical patch box with Hercules on its cover; two 'sweet-water bottles' for perfume; a rectangular pin-cushion; two 'jessemy boxes,' for jasmine oil; and two brushes (later additions). The figural plaquettes depict scenes from Ovid's Metamorphoses. This set once belonged in the collection of financier and art collector J. P. Morgan. Among the very few services of this type, quality, and completeness, one can be found in the Devonshire Collection at Chatsworth in England, and one by the same maker is at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

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MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Covered butter dish collections.artsmia.org/art/59574

double-handled dish with Grecian key design around edge; leaf decorations where handles connect to dish; star-punched drainer insert; domed cover with dove on branch finial

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

"Frog Bank" (or "Two Frogs") mechanical bank collections.artsmia.org/art/81863

paddle wheel boat; 2 smoke stacks; 2 paddle wheels; pilot house; openwork windows down each side; openwork over revolving paddle wheels

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Slipper chair collections.artsmia.org/art/3547

slipper chair or child's chair, walnut and upholstery; offered as a gift in 1962, accessioned 1987
This low-seated chair is a rare example of this form, it may have been used as a child's chair.

MIA: Decorative Arts, Textiles and Sculpture (Bot) @miadecorativearts.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Murphy A146CM wireless console radio collections.artsmia.org/art/58062

floor console radio with wood front with "wings", turned slightly inward, on sides; round speaker with scalloped edge; plastic tuner on top