Art & Objects

We’re drawn to objects that tell us something about how they were made, where they came from, and the people who made or used them. Our sourcing takes us across regions, traditions, and periods. These categories help describe the traditions and qualities we return to again and again:

Art Nouveau

Art Nouveau is an artistic and design movement that emerged in Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, known for its flowing lines, organic forms, and close relationship with the natural world. Botanical motifs—flowers, leaves, vines, and other plant forms—are especially characteristic.

We’re particularly drawn to the European examples of Art Nouveau, where nature was translated into furniture, objects, lighting, and decorative arts. We look for pieces where these organic forms feel integral to the design rather than simply applied as decoration.

Arts and Crafts

The Arts and Crafts movement was a response to industrialization, emphasizing craftsmanship, honest materials, and the skill of the maker. While the movement is often associated with Britain and the United States, we’re especially interested in its relationship to Japanese craft traditions.

Japanese woodworking, ceramics, textiles, and other traditional crafts had a significant influence on Arts and Crafts designers in the West, including the development of the movement in California. We look for Japanese pieces in their own right, as well as work that reflects this exchange of ideas between Japan and the West - particularly an appreciation for natural materials, simple forms, and careful workmanship.

Mingei

Mingei is a Japanese movement and philosophy that celebrates the beauty of everyday objects made by ordinary craftspeople. Ceramics, textiles, baskets, woodwork, and other functional pieces were valued for their utility, natural materials, and connection to local traditions.

We’re drawn to the simplicity and honesty of these objects, where beauty comes from the material, the hand of the maker, and the act of making something well. We look for pieces that embody this spirit—useful, thoughtfully made, and shaped by generations of craft tradition.

Primitive

We use “primitive” to describe early, often humble objects made outside formal artistic traditions, typically from readily available or inexpensive materials. These pieces can predate the folk-art and Tramp Art traditions we collect and often have a distinctly European sensibility. What interests us is the resourcefulness behind them: objects made without formal training, elaborate tools, or expensive materials, but with a strong sense of utility, ingenuity, and form. They often sit somewhere between folk art and what we might now call outsider art, with their appeal coming from the directness of the making rather than technical perfection.

Formally trained

Alongside folk and vernacular objects, we collect work made by formally trained artists and craftspeople. This includes paintings, bronze sculpture, carved stone, and other works where the skill and discipline of the maker are central to the piece. We’re particularly interested in artists who have a strong command of their material - whether that means the surface and patina of bronze, the weight and texture of carved stone, or the way a painter uses color, line, and composition. The work doesn’t need to fit neatly into a particular period or school; what matters is the quality of the making and the strength of the work itself.

Utilitarian

Some of the objects we collect were never intended to be decorative. They were made to do a job: a doorstop to hold open a door, a game board to be played, a boot scraper to clean shoes, or an instrument to make music.

Over time, these objects can become interesting for qualities beyond their original purpose - their materials, craftsmanship, form, patina, or evidence of use. We love giving these everyday objects a second life in the home, where their original function becomes part of the story rather than the only reason they were made.