Tray: Stylized Lily Magnolia, Tin Lithograph Serving Tray, Floral Mid Century, Vintage 1950s

A soft, painterly bloom takes center stage on this quietly elegant serving tray — a cream and coral adaptation of a botanical Lily Magnolia, one fully opened, one still a bud, rendered with the gentle shading of a hand-painted still life.

• Maker: Unknown
• Materials: Metal
• Dimensions: 18" Long x 11" Wide
  
• Origin: USA
• Era: Vintage, 1950s - 1960s
• Condition: Very Good — very minor wear, mostly along the border, one tiny pinhole-size dent, back very clean with no rust, no maker's marks. Please review photos closely before purchasing, as all sales are final.

The floral illustration sits against a smoky charcoal ground, framed by a soft gray border with a double pinstripe inset line — a quietly sophisticated palette that lets the bouquet do all the talking. The florals are shaded with real depth and gradient, more like a botanical painting than a flat graphic pattern, giving the whole piece a gentle softness.

A very large and lovely serving piece for a spring brunch or afternoon tea, and equally at home simply displayed as a small piece of vintage floral art. It also makes a thoughtful gift for anyone who appreciates quiet, old-world elegance in their vintage finds.

While florals like this one can sometimes get filed under "Art Deco", the naturalistic, stylized form here, is a departure from Deco's signature geometric stylization — sunbursts, zigzags, and flattened angular forms. This piece's realistic, dimensional rendering, paired with its smoothly rounded corners, (achieved by large hydraulic presses), deep basin rim and pinstripe detailing, is far more characteristic of the industrial tin-lithographed metal serving trays popular in the 1950s and 60s, placing it a couple of decades later than the Art Deco era.  The design, a Lily Magnolia, is characterized by the pointed petals and distinct slender, wavy, and ribbed green leaves.  Brands like American Art Works and Continental Can Company mass produced millions of tin-lithograph trays for the mid century living rooms.

Browse our shop for more mid-century serving pieces to round out your collection.