Bowl and Dish

A gifted silversmith, Clemens Friedell produced exquisitely wrought silver in the Arts and Crafts aesthetic for an enthusiastic clientele in Pasadena, California. Born in Louisiana and apprenticed in Vienna, Austria, Friedell worked as a silversmith and specialist chaser at Gorham Manufacturing Company from around 1901 until 1907, when a financial panic forced the company to lay off much of its workforce. After moving to Los Angeles in 1910, he set up a studio in Pasadena, where he enjoyed the favor of affluent patrons, including the millionaire brewer Eddie R. Maier, who commissioned a magnificent 107-piece dinner service from Friedell. The virtuosic hammered and chased silverwares he produced reflect Friedell’s European training and his experience with Gorham’s exclusive hand-hammered silver line, Martelé. In addition to commercial success, his work met with critical acclaim, and he was awarded a gold medal for his silver display at the 1915 Panama California Exposition. Although much of his work is highly decorated, this bowl and dish reflect a more restrained aesthetic informed by the principles of the Arts and Crafts Movement that would have appealed to customers with slightly less extravagant budgets or understated tastes.