Lot 110
DANIEL COTTIER (1838-1891)
AESTHETIC MOVEMENT DRESSER, CIRCA 1870
Auction: Design Since 1860 Day One | Wed 14th October | Lots 1 to 245
Description
ebonised wood, with brass fittings and incised, gilded decoration
Dimensions
104.5cm wide, 189cm high, 48cm deep
Provenance
Paul Shutler
Private Collection
Footnote
The firm of Cottier & Co. was founded by the artist, designer, decorator and art dealer Daniel Cottier (1838–1891). Cottier initially trained as a coach painter in Glasgow, but by the 1860s he had moved to London, where he worked as a glass designer. During this period, he attended lectures by the influential critic John Ruskin and received drawing lessons from the artist Ford Madox Brown. Returning to Scotland, Cottier established his own business in 1864, which subsequently developed into a highly successful international enterprise, with branches in London, New York, Sydney and Melbourne.
Cottier’s interests extended across a wide range of decorative arts, including glass, furniture, ceramics and interior design. In the United States, he has been described as a ‘harbinger of Aestheticism … and a profound influence on American decoration’. As a key exponent of the Aesthetic movement, Cottier developed a highly distinctive and original decorative style, characterised by delicately painted surface decoration, often applied against gold or ebonised grounds to create a striking contrast, as seen in the present example. His designs frequently drew upon the Japanese aesthetic that became closely associated with the Aesthetic movement, while also incorporating motifs and sources drawn from earlier cultures. The present lot is a particularly interesting example of this broader approach, combining Cottier’s characteristic decorative treatment with imagery derived from ancient sources.
