Paul T. Frankl’s 1928 clock design for the Warren Telechron Company — marketed as the Modernique — appealed to American consumers’ growing interest in modern design. The Modernique’s metal case, with its step-like sides, starburst motif, and machine-age numbers, mimics the form and ornamentation of a 1920s skyscraper. For Frankl, the skyscraper constituted an ideal of beauty, representing the aspirations of the prevailing American spirit soaring upward.
Collection Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, Denver. Gift of Michael Merson, 2010.0670
1928
Chromiun-plated and enameled metal, molded bakelite, brushed-burnished silver
7.8 x 6.0 x 3.5 in
25.2022.4
Image and text: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2023
Permanent collection