Muse with Violin Screen

Since the early years of the 20th century, the Rose Iron Works, a Cleveland supplier of architectural ornament, has produced distinguished metalwork. The company’s founder, Martin Rose, was born in Austria-Hungary and studied ornamental metalsmithing in Vienna prior to immigrating to Cleveland in 1902. In the 1920s, he hired a talented young Parisian designer, Paul Fehér, to work for the firm. Fehér’s designs, culminating in this massive screen, brought a modern European sensibility to the Rose Iron Works production. With its geometric patterning, highly stylized and abstracted natural forms, and the central figure reminiscent of the celebrated jazz singer Josephine Baker, this screen reflects the classic motifs of Art Deco design.