Ornamental Vase Design
1756-1773
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-500-6
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
This elegant print, titled Ornamental Vase Design, was created by French artist Charles Leviez (1708–1778) between 1756 and 1773. Leviez specialized in ornamental designs that captured the refined decorative tastes of 18th-century France, a period when luxury objects played a central role in aristocratic interiors and courtly life. As a print, this work functioned as both an artwork and a practical template. Designers like Leviez produced such sheets so that potters, metalworkers, and other craftsmen could study and adapt the motifs into three-dimensional vases of porcelain, gilt bronze, or o...