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| Fan - with inscription Russia 1886 enamel on silk satin, ivory sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Yachts on the Gulf of Finland Russia 1879 watercolor on vellum, tortoiseshell sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Lilies Russia 1903 watercolor on cotton, wooden sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
"When we talk about the 'need' for a certain kind of object, it is a good thing to realize that there is no necessary connection between the level or type of need and the quality of the design. This is an important point in any discussion of design and it is worth expanding. Let us say that the 'need' in question concerns a vessel for holding liquids. The response to the need – a designed and manufactured object – may be a perfectly adequate container with no aesthetic interest, or it may be a thing preserved through the ages as an incomparable work of art. In other words, functional sufficiency is no guarantee whatever of good design – it is merely the floor below which a design cannot go without failing to serve its purpose. I think it is important to realize this because there is a widespread misconception today regarding the role of function, and a very general tendency to overemphasize its significance. And just as the role of function is not necessarily a major one, so with the type or level of the need."
– from Problems of Design by George Nelson (New York : Whitney Library of Design, 1957)
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| Fan - Violets, hydrangeas France 1890s gouache on silk gauze, mother-of-pearl sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Spray of flowers France 1850s gouache on moiré silk, sandalwood sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - White lace Europe ca. 1900 Alençon lace, tortoiseshell sticks, diamonds Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Black lace France ca. 1860-80 Chantilly lace, mother-of-pearl sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Lace appliqué France ca. 1900 silk tulle, lace, tortoiseshell sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Feather-edging France ca. 1855-65 painted silk, marabou feathers, ivory sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Mask between swags France 1770s gouache on vellum, ivory sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Amatory scenes France 1880s colored design printed on paper, ivory sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Shepherds and Shepherdesses France ca. 1845-50 gouache on vellum, mother-of-pearl sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - Orchids France 1899 watercolor and gouache on vellum, tortoiseshell sticks Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |
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| Fan - brisé style - Lilies of the valley Austria ca. 1865-70 gouache on mother-of-pearl sticks, wood Hermitage, Saint Petersburg |