Attributed to William Hunt Diederich (Austrian/American, 1884-1953), Art Deco gilt and patinated iron music or magazine rack, with a central motif of a figure with a wolfhound, h. 20", w. 14-7/8", d. 4-7/8". The son of a Hungarian father and American mother (who was a member of the prominent Hunt family of Boston; her father was the acclaimed artist William Morris Hunt), Diederich spent his childhood in Switzerland before briefly attending the Boston Art School and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Formal schooling held little interest for the young man, and Diederich spent several years traveling across the American West working as an itinerant cowboy. He eventually traveled to Africa and Europe, studying in Paris with the great animalier Emmanuel Fremiet. Diederich exhibited in the Paris Salons of 1911 and 1912, and at the Salon d'Automne in 1914. Upon his return to the United States, Diederich settled in New York City where he began to produce silhouettes, sculptures, and carefully composed iron and metal items. A believer that even the most mundane could--and should--be beautiful, he dedicated much of his career to creating gracefully rendered utilitarian objects, such as fire screens, gates, racks and trivets. Incorporating into his work elements of the various cultures he had encountered during his travels, Diederich was inspired by everything from Native American pottery to Roman architecture. His elegant figural pierced metal pieces were much admired by New York society in particular, and his work was frequently exhibited at the Whitney Studio Club (which evolved into the Whitney Museum of American Art), and Ferargil Galleries, New York, New York.

In generally good condition. Overall oxidizing consistent with age, material and usage. Scattered areas of abrading.