Reuben Haley designed sugar bowl as an object for the home that expresses the dynamism of a new age. In 1925 Haley traveled to Paris to visit the International Exposition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts, where he saw decorative arts inspired by the abstract forms of avant-garde movements like Cubism and Expressionism. Upon his return, he incorporated irregular shapes, sharp angles, and bold colors into his designs for industrially produced goods that were affordable to the middle class.