British “Tree Frog” brooch, silver set with green and clear paste jewels, red jewel eyes, marks c. 1895
Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution with compelling evidence in his 1859 book “On the Origin of Species” overcoming scientific rejection of earlier concepts of transmutation of specie. By the 1870s both the scientific community and much of the general public had accepted evolution as a fact and awakening the public to the diversity of life. The frog emerging from Darwin’s Pond was a symbol of the times and a favorite theme for jewelry of the era.
Paul Follot for La Maison Moderne, Art Nouveau waist clasp, silver and chrysoprase, signed c. 1900
PAUL FOLLOT Paris, France
LA MAISON MODERNE Paris, France
Art Nouveau waist clasp c.1900
Gilt silver with chased whiplash design set with 19 cabochons of chrysoprase.
Marks: P. FOLLOT, French swan mark (silver standard mark for small objects)
Illustrated: Documents sur l’Art Industriel au XXe Siecle (Paris: Edition de la Moderne) p. 20, plate 5, n. 53-11
PAUL FOLLOT (1877-1941) French
In the Late 1890’s, Follot studied under graphic designer Eugène Grasset at the Ecole Normale d’Enseignement du Dessin in Paris and later succeeded Grasset in that post. From 1901 to 1904, he designed metalwork, jewelry and textiles for La Maison Moderne, art critic Julius Meier-Graefe’s gallery in Paris. He became director of the interior design studio Pomone of the Paris department store Le Bon Marché in 1923, introducing the Art Deco style into many middle-class home.
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