Auricular style

The auricular style (Dutch kwabstijl, German Ohrmuschelstil, also 'lobate' or 'cartilage baroque') is a mode of ornamental decoration found mainly in northern Europe in the first half of the seventeenth century, bridging Northern Mannerism and the Baroque. Its softly flowing, sometimes asymmetrical relief shapes suggest the folds of a human ear, conch shells, or ambiguous masks emerging from a rippling background, as if the silver were still molten. It flourished above all in Utrecht and Amsterdam silversmithing, where the van Vianen family and Johannes Lutma chased entire vessels from single sheets of silver, and it spread to picture frames, gable stones, and book cartouches, later feeding into Rococo ornament.

Defining characteristics

• Soft, boneless, lobate relief forms suggesting ear cartilage or conch shells
• Melting, liquid surfaces that seem still molten
• Ambiguous masks and stylized marine creatures emerging from the ground
• Three-dimensional elaboration of strapwork motifs
• Forms raised by chasing from a single sheet of metal

Key figures

• Adam van Vianen (1568-1627) — Utrecht silversmith whose 1614 gilded ewer is the style's masterpiece
• Paul van Vianen (d. 1613) — Utrecht silversmith (Adam's brother) who established the auricular vocabulary in relief
• Johannes Lutma (1584-1669) — Amsterdam silversmith, Paul's pupil, who carried the style into the 1640s

Example works

• Gilded ewer commemorating Paul van Vianen — Adam van Vianen (1614)
• Diana and Actaeon bowl — Paul van Vianen (1613)
• Dolphin Basin — Christian van Vianen (1635)

Sources

• Auricular style - Wikipedia encyclopedia

← Back to the catalog