Rowley Gallery Art Deco mirror with gilt relief of a girl, London c.1930

A special Art Deco wall mirror by the renowned Rowley Gallery of London. The mirror is built up in steps from four mirror plates around a green central panel, with a gold-coloured plinth. The central panel carries a gilt relief of a slender, nude girl with a flower beside a stylised tree, an image that still breathes the transition from Art Nouveau to Art Deco. The back bears the stamp ‘ROWLEY – 140 Church St. Kensington’. The Rowley Gallery was founded in 1898 by Albert James Rowley and was located on Church Street in Kensington. In the 1920s and 1930s the workshop became famous for its decorative mirrors, panels and furniture, with designs by, among others, Frank Brangwyn and William Chase. Rowley mirrors are best known with marquetry; an example with a gilt figurative relief and this stepped shape is much rarer. The signed stamp makes the provenance certain. Stunning above a sideboard or mantelpiece in an Art Deco, English classic or eclectic interior, and a real conversation piece in a modern home. Condition: good, with signs of age. The mirror plates have their original screw holes; one plate has a small round spot in the silvering. A fine hairline crack runs across the legs in the relief, and there is a small chip in the gilding near the foot. The gold-coloured plinth and edges show wear. The back is painted silver-grey.