Arts & Crafts a-go-go
Rago Auctions
Marie Zimmerman carved wooden box, c. 1920
estimate: $30,000-$50,000
realized: $117,500
Remember interiors of the 90s? The Stickley and Tiffany knockoff businesses were booming. From movie sets to mall stores, Craftsman-style furniture and decorative arts were everywhere. These days, even though the winds of interior design fashion are blowing more in the direction of midcentury modern (think Eames lounge chairs), Arts & Crafts material still has a loyal following. And when an extraordinary piece comes to auction, this community stands up and takes notice–like it did recently at Rago Auctions in Lambertville, N.J., when this Marie Zimmerman box came to the block.
The piece was a tour de force, a painted wood box by Zimmerman, a highly regarded craftsperson best known for her work in metal and wood, like her hammered copper bowls. This was a rare form for her, and she pulled out all the stops, carving it with a complex design, painting it in gorgeous, jewel-like tones of green, blue, red, and yellow, and embedding actual jewels: amethyst and semi-precious quartz. It even made a splash even back in its day, having been pictured in the February 1922 issue of House & Garden magazine. A world auction record for Zimmerman, nearly quadrupling her previous record.
