Details

Title

Wastebasket

Artist/Maker

Donald Deskey (American, 1894–1989), designer
Deskey-Vollmer, Inc., New York, NY, 1927–1931, manufacturer

Date

1928

Medium

Painted wood

Dimensions

14 x 14 x 8 inches

Credit

Purchase with funds from the Decorative Arts Acquisition Endowment

Accession #

1992.388

On View

Currently not on view

This wastebasket’s geometric form and motifs reflect the modern style and sensibility that emerged in late 1920s America following the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes. Designer Donald Deskey attended the exposition and returned to the United States inspired by the modern aesthetics he saw there, which had not yet been embraced in America. Deskey was soon commissioned to design complete modern environments, both public and private, in New York City, including major department store windows, museum exhibitions, private residences, and the interior of Radio City Music Hall. Even less precious objects such as this wastebasket were not excluded from the notion of a fully modern environment.

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