As both a designer and a teacher, the Austrian ceramicist and glassware designer Michael Powolny was an important figure in the development of modernist aesthetics in Vienna at the turn of the 20th century. His romantic sculptural pottery figures embrace the lush, dynamic stylings of Gustav Klimt and other progressive artists, while his functional pieces — such as glass bowls and vases — employ the simple linear and geometric ornamentation that marked the work of Josef Hoffmann and other members of the Wiener Werkstätte community of designers and craftsmen.
Powolny received classical training in ceramics from his father, a potter, and at the Vienna School of Applied Arts, but later joined in the modernizing movement in the Austrian arts at the close of the 19th century. In 1897, Klimt, Hoffman, Koloman Moser and other artists and architects founded the Vienna Secession, a group that fought for freedom of expression against the city’s tradition-bound arts establishment. Powolny’s work reflects the changing times. He used classical figures in his ceramics — female nudes, cherubs — yet would dress them in modern ornament such as garlands of abstract, geometric flowers. Pieces from Powolny’s ceramics company were sold through the Wiener Werkstätte (Viennese Workshops) founded by Hoffmann and Moser, and Hoffman later hired Powolny to create ceramic ornamentation for his architectural masterpiece, the Palais Stoclet in Brussels.
Powolny would go on to design glassware that combines elegant, tapering forms with precise linear decoration. His most influential work may have come as a professor at the School of Applied Arts, where he taught both Lucie Rie, the great Austrian-British modernist ceramicist, and the American potter Viktor Schreckengost, creator of the “Jazz Bowl,” an icon of the Streamline Moderne design. As you will see from the items on offer, Michael Powolny’s works have a double appeal: in their sprightly, endearing forms and as artifacts that document a period of signal change in the history of modern arts and crafts.
Art Deco Green Colored Glazed Vintage Tile by Michael Powolny circa 1925 Austria
By Michael Powolny
Located in Vienna, AT
Art deco green colored glazed vintage tile, which shows a motif with a violinist. An amazing vintage tile designed by Michael Powolny, circa 1925, ...
Ceramic
Burmantofts Faience Bacchanalian Green Glazed Tile
By Burmantofts Pottery
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A scarce Burmantofts Faience Bacchanalian tile of rectangular form modelled in relief with figures attending to a resting man set within a raised stepped edge and decorated in green ...
Faience, Ceramic
$228
H 10.63 in W 9.45 in D 1.58 in
Mid Century Design Ceramic Wall Tile Decoration, Czechoslovakia, 1960s
Located in Praha, CZ
- Czechoslovakia, 1960s - Good original condition - Marked jr.
Ceramic
$2,526 / set
H 7.88 in W 7.88 in D 4.73 in
Unique Design Ceramic Tiles / Czechoslovakia, 1960s, Never Used, 23 Pieces
By Rako Ceramic
Located in Praha, CZ
- Czechoslovakia, 1960s - Perfect original condition, never used - Suitable for room divider or other decoration - Marked by manufactures - Price for all. jr
Ceramic
$1,034
H 16.34 in W 5.32 in D 0.79 in
Set of Three 19th Century Spanish Hand Painted Glazed Ceramic Patterned Tiles
Located in Marbella, ES
Set of three 19th century Spanish hand painted glazed ceramic patterned tiles Dimensions exclude frame.
Ceramic
$1,263
H 11.82 in W 11.82 in D 1.19 in
Giovanni de Simone Colored Ceramic Fish Squared Tile Plate, Italy 1960s
By Pablo Picasso, Giovanni de Simone
Located in Rome, IT
Beautiful squared wall mounted tile plate in colored ceramic representing three fishes by the Italian artisti Giovanni De Simone. Giovanni De Simone was a great Sicilian artist...
Ceramic, Terracotta, Pottery
French Art Nouveau Majolica Wall Plate with Female Portrait, circa 1900
Located in Boven Leeuwen, NL
A beautiful French majolica wall plate from the Art Nouveau period, made around 1900. At its centre is the graceful profile of a young woman with flowing auburn hair and a deep blue ...
Ceramic
$2,850
H 9 in W 11.75 in D 0.25 in
"Female Nude with Lyre, " Spectacular, Rare Art Deco Framed Tile by Greek Artist
By S.S. Simonaky
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Dominated by an elegant female nude embracing a Greek lyre, this spectacular framed Art Deco glazed panel shows the period's fascination with Classical imagery interpreted in a modern way. Awash in tones of rose and blue highlighted in a metallic gold glaze, both the nude's hair and robes are depicted as flowing waves of dreamy color. The Greek artist...
Ceramic
$976
H 11.03 in W 11.03 in D 0.79 in
Set of Four 19th Century Portuguese Hand Painted Glazed Ceramic Patterned Tiles
Located in Marbella, ES
Antique set of four 19th century Portuguese hand painted glazed ceramic patterned tiles with white frame Dimension do not include frame.
Ceramic
$2,249Sale Price|25% Off
H 11.23 in Dm 1.58 in
Art Deco Andre Metthey Glazed Ceramic Plate / Charger. France 1910-20
By André Metthey
Located in Buenos Aires, Olivos
Fantastic Art Deco Wall Glazed Ceramic Plate. A couple in Love. Very Romantic, both legs together form a heart. Spectacula piece of a fantastic Artist. André Metthey...
Ceramic
$1,250
H 10.5 in W 10.5 in D 1 in
"Aquarius, " Important Art Deco Tile with Nude Male and Limed Oak Frame
By Bonnie MacLeary
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Created by Bonnie MacLeary, a Texas-born sculptor famed for her "Aspiration" and "Ouch" bronzes, two of several created in the 1920s, this classic Art Deco tile dates from the 1940s,...
Ceramic, Oak
$102 / item
H 6.03 in W 6.03 in D 0.36 in
1 of the 30 Glazed Ceramic Art Deco Tiles by Gilliot, circa 1930s
By Gilliot
Located in Rijssen, NL
This is an amazing set of 30 original Art Deco handmade tiles. A beautiful relief and color. With a stylish design. These tiles would be charming displayed on easels, framed or incor...
Ceramic
$1,000
H 7.88 in W 7.88 in D 0.38 in
Arts & Crafts Minton Pottery Kingfisher Tile Designed by Christopher Dresser
By Minton, Christopher Dresser
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
An Arts & Crafts Minton tile in the Kingfisher pattern, designed by Christopher Dresser, ca. 1870. Arts & Crafts designer Christopher Dresser’s works were true to the movement’s c...
Earthenware
$1,150
H 1.25 in W 10.25 in D 10.25 in
"Capricorn, " Important Art Deco Tile with Zodiac Theme by MacLeary
By Bonnie MacLeary
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Created by Bonnie MacLeary, a Texas-born sculptor famed for her "Aspiration" and "Ouch" bronzes, two of several created in the 1920s, this classic Art Deco tile...
Ceramic, Wood
Scarce Burmantofts Faience Bacchanalian Green Glazed Tile
By Burmantofts Pottery
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A scarce Burmantofts Faience Bacchanalian tile of rectangular form modelled in relief with figures gathering grapes, some at play, set within a raised stepped edge and decorated in m...
Pottery
Burmantofts Faience Bacchanalian Red Glazed Tile
By Burmantofts Pottery
Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire
A scarce Burmantofts Faience Bacchanalian tile of rectangular form modelled in relief with figures with a goat set within a raised stepped edge and decorated in burgundy glazes. Inci...
Faience, Ceramic