Tag Archives: Century of Progress

Not So Driving For Deco

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No doubt, few of us have been Driving for Deco due to recent world events.  Regular readers know about our weekend finds, items we passed on and regretted, antique vacations and history of long-gone deco monuments. It seems we are in  perfect harmony and agreement at all times.

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Not!

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And that is what this post is about.

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Several times (OK, really many times) we find ourselves disagreeing as to whether to get something or not. Inevitably, one or the other talks the other into a purchase or, defying the other, purchases it anyway. Here are a few:

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Chase French Watering Can: Produced between 1933-1937, this is a large and hard to find piece.  When I spotted this one, it was very tarnished, and Anthony was unimpressed. Seeing the maker’s mark Chase, I convinced him to take the chance.  His opinion changed after we polished it up. It lives prominently displayed in his home. And where else but by his plants

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Pillow Vase and Machine-age Lamp: After the local Vietnam Vets Thrift store closed in Rochester, the new tenants, Green-o-vation, a co-op, moved in.  We occasionally find items here but not as often as the VA thrift store.

The first was a pillow vase by Russel Wright / Bauer. As a tactile person, I picked it up and drew his attention to it. Anthony stated he saw and passed up what he thought to be a not-too-attractive, mid-century vase.  I noted the signature on the bottom and a quick internet search and he was interested. At $15.00, it came home with us. Often mistaken for a piece of mid-century pottery. This is a heavy piece was produced between 1945-1947. The line was not successful and pieces are difficult to find.

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The second thing he passed on was a rather grubby deco style table lamp in the back room. I saw it and dragged him back to take a look. To say he was unimpressed is an understatement. Beside the general grime, it was covered in rust. Also, it wasn’t priced.

I liked the overall lines and figured it could be cleaned up and if necessary, painted – if the price was right. He was still not convinced. Fortunately, the owners had a 70% off all their merchandise. And the final sale price was $7.50. A quick clean and the “rust”, which was nicotine stains, wiped away to reveal a beautiful chrome lamp. After rewiring and a new shade, it proudly resides in Anthony’s TV room.

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Homer Laughlin, Clematis: On one of our trips to (the sadly closed) All That Jazz Antique Mall, Anthony spotted a box of china. Lots of china! I was initially ambivalent. I liked it, but we have so much dishware already. The pattern and the price were nice and didn’t take much convincing and it is very deco.  I walked away with a box of Homer Laughlin Wells china with the Clematis (also called Red Beauty) decal for $42.00. After some research, we found it to be one of the more desirable decals and difficult to find, let alone 92 pieces!

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1934 World’s Fair Cocktail Shaker: On one of our frequent trips to The Heart of Ohio Antique Mall we this Century of Progress cocktail shaker. Anthony really liked it but the price was off-putting.  I asked if he’d ever seen one before and if not, what were the chances of seeing one again. It was the most expensive item purchased on the trip.

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Vintage Books: Anthony is a great collector of vintage books.  He found a vintage copy (6th edition) of the Maltese Falcon, and as it was not a first edition, he passed. I convinced him that for $9, and the fact he’d never seen one before – take a chance. Glad he did. This edition issue in similar condition sell online for $150-$200.

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Speaking of books, we regularly visit One Potato Two Antiques in Bloomfield, NY. Anthony spotted a vintage Agatha Christie (one of my favorite authors). On the rare occasion I didn’t want to spend money, I passed on it. However, in his extreme wisdom, Anthony asked, “How many Agatha Christie’s from the ‘20’s do you see floating around?” Point taken (I hate when he uses my own logic against me!) and I bought it. Anthony has added to this collection over the years.

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So, although we don’t always agree, we still enjoy the search and “challenges” when driving for deco.

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Be safe, and hopefully we’ll be on the hunt again, soon!

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Chris & Anthony, The Freakin”tiquen Guys

Reference Library Update: Home Talent

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Walter Dorwin Teague portrait

Walter Dorwin Teague, circa 1939. Image from idsa.org.

 

December 18th marks the 135th year since the birth of Walter Dorwin Teague. This latest Reference Library update comes from the January, 1939 House Beautiful. The brief article features Teague’s interior design for his apartment in Manhattan’s exclusive River House.  River House (designed by the firm of Bottomley, Wagner & White, 1931) is located at the end of East 52nd Street. When it opened, it was at the end of a street of tenement houses. It was the inspiration for Sidney Kingsley’s 1935 play, Dead End.

 

River House, 1931.

River House, December 15, 1931. Samuel H. Gottscho photograph from the mcny.org

 

Born in Pendleton, Indiana, Teague aspired to become an artist while still in high school. At the age of 19 he moved to New York City to study at the Art Students League of New York. Between 1908 and the mid-1920’s Teague worked in advertising, typography and graphic design. Creating frames for ads based on Baroque and Renaissance designs became his signature style. In time these frames would become known by the generic term “Teague Borders”, even if they were not designed by him.

 

 
1922 Arrow Collar Ad.
1922 J. C. Leyendecker Arrow Collar illustration with frame by Walter Dorwin Teague. Image from Pinterest.



Teague left commercial advertising work in the mid-1920’s. He set off for Europe to study the new modern styles. While there, Teague became familiar with the work of the Bauhaus at an exposition in Italy.  From this point forward his work would be influenced by Le Corbusier and the Bauhaus. After returning to the United States, Teague entered the industrial design field. His first major commission came from the Eastman Kodak Company. Teague designed a number of cameras for Kodak. The Bauhaus style is very evident in the Kodak 1A Gift Camera (1930) and the less expensive Beau Brownies (1930 – 1933).

 

 

Kodak Beau Brownies.
Kodak Beau Brownie No 2A in shades of brown and No 2 in black and maroon (1930 -1933). From the collection of the author.


Teague continued designing for Kodak into the mid-1930’s. His crowning achievement for the company came with the exceptionally designed Kodak Bantam Special of 1936. 

 

Kodak Bantam Special.

The Kodak Bantam Special, 1936, with its original box. Image from http://kodak.digitalfx.tv.

By the early 1930’s Teague became one of the top industrial designers in the United States. This put him in the ranks with Norman Bel Geddes, Raymond Loewy and Henry Dreyfuss. During this period some of his other clients included Sparton Radio and Texaco. 

 

Sparton Bluebird Radio.

Walter Dorwin Teague’s 566 “Bluebird” radio for Sparton, 1936. This model is in the collection at the Corning Museum of Glass. Author’s photo.

 

Texaco station rendering.

Teague rendering for the prototype Texaco service station, 1936. Image from NC University.

 

He began exhibition work with the Ford Pavilion at Chicago’s 1933-1934 Century of Progress Exposition. 

 

 

Roof of Safety.

Roof of Safety exhibit inside the Ford Building, Century of Progress 1933 – 1934. Image from https://chicagology.com

 

Ford Globe.

Globe in the Court of the World, Ford Exhibit at the Century of Progress. Image from https://chicagology.com

As a result of his work in Chicago, Teague continued his association with Ford. He created their exhibit at the 1935 California Pacific International Exposition in San Diego. The following year, his Texaco exhibit proved to be a popular attraction at Dallas’s Texas Centennial Exposition. For the New York World’s Fair Teague’s exhibit work included commissions from Ford, United States Steel and National Cash Register. 

 

Ford Cyclorama

Teague’s Ford Cyclorama at the 1939 New York World’s Fair.Image from https://designhistorylab.com                                                                                                                    

Working in collaboration with Edwin Fuerst for Libbey Glass they created the Embassy pattern. The glasses engraved with an eagle and stars were used at the Federal Building at the New York World’s Fair. Glasses without the engraving were sold to the public. These are very collectible today. 

 

Embassy pattern glass.

Walter Dorwin Teague and Edwin Fuerst glass in the Embassy pattern for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. This glass is in the collection at the Corning Museum of Glass. Author’s photo.

 

While Teague was busy putting the final touches on several exhibits at the 1939 New York World’s Fair, House Beautiful honored him with a feature on his apartment. To read the article click on the magazine cover below.

 

January, 1939 House Beautiful.

January, 1939 issue of House Beautiful.

 

Anthony & Chris (The Freakin, Tiquen Guys)