Displays at the Powell Library

Sphinxes, griffins, and sea monsters were not just characters of legend in the 18th and 19th centuries—they were also a source of design inspiration for furniture, silver, ironwork, and interior decoration. Creatures Featured: Mythological Figures as Decoration includes both rare materials from the Kitty King Powell Library and objects from the Bayou Bend Collection that illustrate the ways designers incorporated mythical creatures into the deco­rative arts.

 

These fantastical figures were often part of larger trends in design, includ­ing the Neoclassical, or Classical revival, style of the 18th century, which drew its inspira­tion from ancient Roman and Greek art. An interest in Egyptian art and culture swept Europe beginning with Napoleon’s Egyptian Campaign (1798–99), which brought images of ancient Egyptian culture to the public with much fanfare. The Egyptian revival was popular through the 19th century, and exam­ples in this display include early trendsetter Thomas Hope’s 1807 publication through to its incarnations in America wrought in silver and even wallpaper in the latter half of the 19th century. Sea creatures, especially dolphins, were another motif that could be used to reference Classical, Baroque, and Rococo sources, sometimes simultaneously.