THE ORIGINS OF ART DECO ARE CHARTED IN “THE TRIUMPH OF DESIGN” - A TALK AT RAGO AUCTIONS ON DECEMBER 2

Lambertville, NJ:  The Rago Arts and Auction Center hosts an open house on Wednesday, December 2, 2015, featuring Derek E. Ostergard speaking on the origins of Art Deco in “The Triumph of Design: Modernism & Elitism in France, 1914-1939”.

Between 1914 and 1939, Paris was the scene of the last movement in design when true aesthetic and technical innovation serviced the needs of the privileged few as it had in centuries past across Europe.  During this interwar era, French designers, artists and craftsmen undertook the richest stylistic investigation ever attempted by a national body of designers, one that would leave an indelible mark on 20th century taste. 

Paris emerged as the acknowledged center for production of some of the most accomplished designs in the history of modernism - whether produced by individual artisan /designers such as Maurice Marinot and Hélène Henry, large-scale ateliers run by designers like Jean Dunand and Emile-Jacques Ruhlman, or the globally-positioned firms like Cartier and Lalique whose products were available through a wide array of venues. 

Known as Art Moderne, and later still, as Art Deco, this material has retained not only a hold on our collective, nostalgic memory, but also on architects, designers and museums who continue to explore its numerous manifestations for inspiration.

Derek E. Ostergard is a senior expert in the history of European decorative arts and design, dating between the late eighteenth century to the middle of the twentieth. He is the former Associate Director and Founding Dean of the Bard Graduate Center for Studies in the Decorative Arts, Design and Culture in NYC which he cofounded in 1991.  He has served on the faculty of the Cooper-Hewitt Museum Masters Degree program, Sotheby’s Educational Board and as head of the vetting committees for 18th, 19th and 20th-Century European Decorative Arts for the Winter Antique Show in New York. He has curated a score of museum exhibitions and been a board member for many non-profit institutions, including UNESCO’s International Council of Museums.  He has served on several international juries for craft and design. He has lectured on a wide array of topics at museums, institutions and societies around the world.  Mr. Ostergard is also a prolific editor and author, publishing extensively on furniture, architecture, glass, porcelain and jewelry. He is currently working on three manuscripts.   

A wine and cheese reception begins at 5 p.m. Derek Ostergard’s talk begins at 6 p.m. RSVP to 609.397.9374, ext. 119 or raac@ragoarts.com. If you are unable to rsvp in advance, please join us if you can. All are welcome.

TO THE EDITOR

High-resolution images available on request.

About Rago Arts and Auction Center

Rago is a leading U.S. auction house with $30 million in annual sales. It serves thousands of sellers and buyers yearly with a singular blend of global reach, personal service and competitive commissions for single pieces, collections and estates. Rago holds auctions of 20th/21st c. design, fine art, decorative arts, furnishings, jewelry, Asian, militaria, coins and currency, silver, historic ephemera, and ethnographic property. Rago also provides a range of appraisal services conducted by USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice) compliant appraisers, performed to the highest standards set by the IRS, insurers and the Appraisers Association of America. Rago is located in New Jersey, midway between New York City and Philadelphia.

END OF PRESS RELEASE