Maison Desny
Wine Taster
c. 1930
Physical Qualities
Silver, rosewood, 2 x 4 7/8 in. (5.1 x 12.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Decorative Arts Acquisitions Endowment established by the Friends of the American Wing
Object Number
2003.237
Maison Desny was a small Parisian design house that produced individual pieces of furniture, lighting, rugs, decorative objects, and even complete interiors — all marked by a refined geometric vocabulary. The designers gave this diminutive wine taster — a common form during the 18th and 19th centuries — a modernist twist by using severe volumes and flat planes that recall deconstructed cups painted by French cubist artists such as Georges Braque.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by purchase, 2003; Barry Friedman, Ltd., New York, New York
Markings: BASE, side, (stamped) "DESNY PARIS / MADE IN FRANCE / DEPOSE"
