With an air of serenity and self-assuredness, this bust of a modern woman peered over Elaine when she sat at her dressing table. It was created by Vally Wieselthier, who was revered for her expressive figural clay sculptures. As a promoter of Viennese modernism, it is no surprise that Urban selected this bust for inclusion in the Wormser bedroom. His 1928 boudoir Repose featured a similar work by the artist. It is possible that the head in Elaine’s room was part of the remaining inventory of Urban’s short-lived New York showroom that featured the work of the modern Austrian design collective, the Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshop). Wieselthier was a principal designer at the Werkstätte for several years.
