"Oceana" Box

Arts of the Americas

c. 1935

Russel Wright
American, 1904–1976
Klise Wood Working Company
American, founded 1910
Grand Rapids, Michigan

Like Russel Wright’s American Modern line of ceramics, this wooden box was organically inspired and reasonably priced in order to appeal to a wide audience. Wright successfully adapted a sculptural, handcrafted quality to industrial production techniques. Probably designed to hold candy, the box was made for the Oceana line of free-form wooden serving pieces that imitated marine motifs such as the shell. Part of a larger group of home furnishings entitled American Way, the Oceana line was considered appropriate for use in summer homes.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Arts of the Americas

Artist: Russel Wright
Title: "Oceana" Box
Place: Grand Rapids (Object made in)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: c. 1935
Medium: Maple
Inscriptions: Russel Wright (facsimile signature incised on base); designed by Russel Wright, "Oceana" carved wooden ware made by KLISE (printed on adhesive label on base)
Dimensions: 7.6 × 23.5 × 15.9 cm (3 × 9 1/4 × 6 1/4 in.)
Credit Line: Martha and William Steen Fund
Reference Number: 1999.679

Jennifer M. Downs, “ ‘The New Modern Feeling’: A Catalogue of the Collection,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 27, 2 (2001), 59–61, cat. 16.
Judith A. Barter, et al., American Modernism at the Art Institute of Chicago, From World War I to 1955 (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2009), cat. 77. 109.

With Historical Design, Inc., New York, by 1999; sold to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1999.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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