1860-1910: A New Era in Decorative Arts and Design

Our 2025 sale of Design 1860-1910, showcases the dramatic redefinition of the nature of art and culture during this rich chapter of decorative arts and design. Explore the designers who ushered in the emergence of revival movements.

Founded by Scottish designer, artist, and dealer Daniel Cottier, Cottier & Co. was one of the most influential fine and decorative arts firms of the late 19th century. An early proponent of the Aesthetic Movement, Cottier helped to redefine the relationship between fine art and design, shaping taste across Europe, North America, and Australia.

Born in Glasgow in 1838, Cottier began his career as an apprentice coach painter before moving to London, where he studied under artist Ford Madox Brown. His early stained-glass work drew upon Assyrian, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman sources, distinguished by richly colored surfaces and monumental figuration. These early influences informed a distinctive style that blended classical and exotic motifs with bold surface treatment and refined color.

As a tastemaker and entrepreneur, Cottier understood the emerging market for European art and interior design in America’s “Gilded Age”. In a Fifth Avenue showroom, the New York branch featured everything from contemporary European paintings to furniture and stained glass. 

Cottier & Co. helped introduce the Aesthetic Movement to the United States, leaving a lasting impression on artists like Louis Comfort Tiffany and John La Farge. The firm’s holistic approach to interior design seamlessly combined fine and decorative arts with a design sensibility that celebrates a fully integrated interior. Cottier’s legacy is one of creative integration, where fine craftsmanship, artistic expression, and historical reverence intersect.

Christopher Dresser’s work for Minton stands as a compelling example of his progressive design principles. A trained botanist with a deep appreciation for global aesthetics, Dresser’s approach was shaped by both his academic training and extensive world travels.

He began working with Minton in the early 1860s, during a period when the factory was eager to innovate beyond its established repertoire. As a freelance designer, Dresser drew inspiration from a wide range of sources, including Persian, Chinese, and Japanese art, and infused these influences with a rigorously modern sensibility.

This collaboration remains one of the most intriguing in the history of decorative arts. Dresser brought a radical, forward-looking vision to one of Victorian England’s most traditional ceramic manufacturers. His work was admired in major exhibitions, captured the attention of the international design community, and became a touchstone of Victorian design reform. While not all his proposed designs were produced, the enduring nature of their partnership speaks volumes. Minton’s willingness to engage with Dresser’s industrial-friendly aesthetic demonstrated a rare openness to change.

Today, Dresser’s Minton works are held in major institutional collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Beyond their inherent beauty, these designs reflect a broader reframing of the structure and purpose of decorative arts—at a time when traditional craftsmanship and industrial production were merging at a rapid pace. For collectors, Dresser’s pieces for Minton remain celebrated examples of a pioneering designer who both challenged and modernized a deeply established tradition.