Embodying the ideals of the Aesthetic and Arts and Crafts movements, Florence Koehler worked in a variety of decorative media, including domestic interiors, china decorating, jewelry, and painting. In jewelry, as in pottery and painting, Koehler exhibited a scholar's sense of the past and a modernist's eye for the contemporary. Favoring pearls, gems, unpolished gold, and muted enamel, she derived inspiration from Renaissance designs during her extended stays in England, France, and Italy.
This suite was made for Emily Crane Chadbourne, daughter of the Chicago industrialist Richard T. Crane.
Gift of Emily Crane Chadbourne, 1952 (52.43.1-.3).