A tall pair of Arts & Crafts floriform candlesticks by American metalworker, jeweler and designer, Marie Zimmermann (1879-1972). Both candlesticks are fully marked and from the artist's estate. A similar design for candle holders in gilded copper is illustrated on page 329, fig. 10.7 of The Jewelry and Metalwork of Marie Zimmermann, 2012.
This heavily silvered Arts and Crafts design dates circa 1915 while Zimmermann maintained a workshop studio and showroom at the National Arts Club in New York. The domed and scalloped bases show hammer marks and the twisted tube stems support lobed and fluted collars with removable candle cup inserts. Each candlestick is stamped M. Zimmermann/Maker over her MZ cipher underfoot and measures 15.5 in. H x 3.5 in. Dia. (upper) x 5.25 in Dia. (base).
The candlesticks are in very good condition with small spots of tarnish, oxidation, and edge wear related to age and use. Both removable candle inserts have a slightly darker matte surface which is likely the result of rhodium plating, a technique Zimmermann used to prevent tarnish. Although both fit perfectly into their respective slots, they are each just slightly raised in one spot.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City holds the largest collection of objects by Marie Zimmermann, acquiring their first example of her work in 1922. Examples of her designs in jewelry and metalwork are also in the permanent collections of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Carnegie Museum of Art, the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Wolfsonian-Florida International University, and the Columbus Museum of Art.
Provenance: The Estate of Marie Zimmermann.
