Skyscraper hand mirror

Louis W. Rice

ca. 1928

Electroplate, glass

New York Historical

A silver hand mirror with a geometric, fan-shaped head and a long, angular handle. The surface is divided by thin, incised lines. The stepped-back skyscraper became a symbol of the modern American aesthetic, drawing both critical acclaim and disdain in the late 1920s and 1930s. The skyscraper motif was adopted for furniture, cocktail accessories, and other elements of interior design by leading modern designers such as Paul Frankl, Kem Weber, and Norman Bel Geddes. Bernard Rice's Sons Inc., with workrooms in Brooklyn and showrooms at 325 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, introduced its Apollo line in 1928, proclaiming: "The sky-scraper is the inspiration of modernism." In addition to dresser sets, the Apollo line included tea and coffee wares and accessories for cock