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Lot Essay
BLOSSOMING INGENUITY
TIFFANY STUDIOS AND THE ‘CLEMATIS’
Louis Tiffany had a deep affinity for all plant life but perhaps none greater than that for climbing vines. Wisteria, grape, laburnum and trumpet creepers were all featured at one time or another in his various artistic creations. Largely ignored by Tiffany, although not entirely forgotten, was the clematis.
The vine, native to China, was cultivated in Japan in the 17th century and was frequently depicted in Japanese ornamental artworks, as the clematis flower symbolized ingenuity and cleverness. It is likely that Tiffany was familiar with the plant through his significant collection of Asian art, as well as seeing the vine itself, which was introduced to the United States in 1864.
Tiffany utilized the clematis in one of his earliest decorative motifs. He designed in 1880 a wallpaper depicting the vine among cobwebs that “is not at all obtrusively flowery, but still wonderfully suggestive to anyone who knows New England country roads.” This wallpaper was so unique and critically acclaimed that it was still being discussed in 1893: “Such work as this ventures on dangerous ground, and can only be controlled by wise artistic restraint. When successful, as this paper is, it has great freshness and is charmingly naïve.”
Surprisingly, the clematis rarely appeared in Tiffany’s leaded glass windows. The vine, however, received greater attention when he decided to create leaded glass lamp shades. The great majority of lamps illustrated in an 1899 company catalog entitled Lamps and Fixtures featured blown Favrile glass shades. There were, however, a few leaded glass shades depicted, including an electrified chandelier, then known as an “electrolier,” intended for use over library or dining room tables. The model shown was described as a “shade of leaded ‘Favrile Glass’ in ornamental design of dogwood flowers and foliage.” Available in a variety of “candle powers,” the chandelier was priced at $125, with other floral designs available for $150. The model was produced with nasturtiums, daffodils, peonies, allamanders and other flowers. The exceptional early clematis shade offered here is exceedingly rare, with possibly fewer than five examples made.
The shade was later listed in the Tiffany Studios 1906 Price List as “604. 28” CLEMATIS, straight sides, circular, Complete $150” and was discontinued by 1910. There are a couple of factors that strongly suggest that this particular shade was created well prior to 1906, possibly even as early as 1899. One indicator is the large upper aperture ring that was typical in the firm’s initial leaded shades. Although electricity was quickly becoming commonplace in American homes at the turn of the century, many of Tiffany’s clients were still using gas or kerosene to light their fixtures. Glass chimneys were required in those cases and the company did not create smaller aperture rings until the use of electricity became more widespread.
Furthermore, the glass in this shade is noticeably thicker than that found in shades made just a few years later. The glasshouse eventually formulated a thinner glass that was meant specifically for shades and was easier for the artisans to work with. Initially, however, only sheet glass intended for leaded windows was available. This added to the time, difficulty and expense of making a shade, but, as with most things created at Tiffany Studios, cost of production was not always an overriding factor.
And the glass selected for this shade is truly spectacular. There is a profusion of meandering climbing clematis blossoms, with tortoise-shell colored stamen, in shades of scarlet, fuchsia, violet, plum, sapphire and periwinkle among opalescent green leaves on sinuous light green, chartreuse-yellow and brown vines. All of this is on a brilliant purple-streaked teal and mottled green background. The variety of textures used in the construction of the shade is astounding and includes petals comprised of granite and ripple glass, with the irregular surfaces on the interior that greatly enhance the depth of color and sense of movement among the blossoms. The background has a preponderance of foliage, or “confetti” glass, with some clear segments featuring highly unusual stretched and crackled thin green shards.
The telescoping bronze floor base was probably a special order for the original buyer, who likely requested Tiffany to make minor alterations to the electrolier so that it could be converted into a shade for what was then known as a “piano lamp.” The base’s design features three flared lion’s paw feet that extend to slender curved legs, reinforced by a lower beaded band, having “swan neck” upper terminals. The adjustable central column continues to a sphere from which originate three support arms that mimic the legs. The inspiration for the design was likely a piano lamp base that was familiar to Tiffany. Ferdinand Bing (no relation to Siegfried Bing), was a well-known importer of European decorative works with a gallery in Paris as well as 106 Grand Street in New York City. Bing, in late 1893, had a well-publicized exhibition in New York of recently made European lamps, including a tall French tripodal gilt bronze base with a central shaft, “a new feature and is an improvement in piano lamps.”
Both the shade and the base are incredibly special, and together create an amazing visual statement. The use of relatively early Favrile glass infuses the shade with a luminescence and radiance that is anticipated, but not always achieved, in leaded glass shades. Without a doubt, this is one of the rarest and finest examples of a Clematis lamp to ever appear on the market.
– Paul Doros, former curator of glass at the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA and author of The Art Glass of Louis Comfort Tiffany (New York, 2013)
TIFFANY STUDIOS AND THE ‘CLEMATIS’
Louis Tiffany had a deep affinity for all plant life but perhaps none greater than that for climbing vines. Wisteria, grape, laburnum and trumpet creepers were all featured at one time or another in his various artistic creations. Largely ignored by Tiffany, although not entirely forgotten, was the clematis.
The vine, native to China, was cultivated in Japan in the 17th century and was frequently depicted in Japanese ornamental artworks, as the clematis flower symbolized ingenuity and cleverness. It is likely that Tiffany was familiar with the plant through his significant collection of Asian art, as well as seeing the vine itself, which was introduced to the United States in 1864.
Tiffany utilized the clematis in one of his earliest decorative motifs. He designed in 1880 a wallpaper depicting the vine among cobwebs that “is not at all obtrusively flowery, but still wonderfully suggestive to anyone who knows New England country roads.” This wallpaper was so unique and critically acclaimed that it was still being discussed in 1893: “Such work as this ventures on dangerous ground, and can only be controlled by wise artistic restraint. When successful, as this paper is, it has great freshness and is charmingly naïve.”
Surprisingly, the clematis rarely appeared in Tiffany’s leaded glass windows. The vine, however, received greater attention when he decided to create leaded glass lamp shades. The great majority of lamps illustrated in an 1899 company catalog entitled Lamps and Fixtures featured blown Favrile glass shades. There were, however, a few leaded glass shades depicted, including an electrified chandelier, then known as an “electrolier,” intended for use over library or dining room tables. The model shown was described as a “shade of leaded ‘Favrile Glass’ in ornamental design of dogwood flowers and foliage.” Available in a variety of “candle powers,” the chandelier was priced at $125, with other floral designs available for $150. The model was produced with nasturtiums, daffodils, peonies, allamanders and other flowers. The exceptional early clematis shade offered here is exceedingly rare, with possibly fewer than five examples made.
The shade was later listed in the Tiffany Studios 1906 Price List as “604. 28” CLEMATIS, straight sides, circular, Complete $150” and was discontinued by 1910. There are a couple of factors that strongly suggest that this particular shade was created well prior to 1906, possibly even as early as 1899. One indicator is the large upper aperture ring that was typical in the firm’s initial leaded shades. Although electricity was quickly becoming commonplace in American homes at the turn of the century, many of Tiffany’s clients were still using gas or kerosene to light their fixtures. Glass chimneys were required in those cases and the company did not create smaller aperture rings until the use of electricity became more widespread.
Furthermore, the glass in this shade is noticeably thicker than that found in shades made just a few years later. The glasshouse eventually formulated a thinner glass that was meant specifically for shades and was easier for the artisans to work with. Initially, however, only sheet glass intended for leaded windows was available. This added to the time, difficulty and expense of making a shade, but, as with most things created at Tiffany Studios, cost of production was not always an overriding factor.
And the glass selected for this shade is truly spectacular. There is a profusion of meandering climbing clematis blossoms, with tortoise-shell colored stamen, in shades of scarlet, fuchsia, violet, plum, sapphire and periwinkle among opalescent green leaves on sinuous light green, chartreuse-yellow and brown vines. All of this is on a brilliant purple-streaked teal and mottled green background. The variety of textures used in the construction of the shade is astounding and includes petals comprised of granite and ripple glass, with the irregular surfaces on the interior that greatly enhance the depth of color and sense of movement among the blossoms. The background has a preponderance of foliage, or “confetti” glass, with some clear segments featuring highly unusual stretched and crackled thin green shards.
The telescoping bronze floor base was probably a special order for the original buyer, who likely requested Tiffany to make minor alterations to the electrolier so that it could be converted into a shade for what was then known as a “piano lamp.” The base’s design features three flared lion’s paw feet that extend to slender curved legs, reinforced by a lower beaded band, having “swan neck” upper terminals. The adjustable central column continues to a sphere from which originate three support arms that mimic the legs. The inspiration for the design was likely a piano lamp base that was familiar to Tiffany. Ferdinand Bing (no relation to Siegfried Bing), was a well-known importer of European decorative works with a gallery in Paris as well as 106 Grand Street in New York City. Bing, in late 1893, had a well-publicized exhibition in New York of recently made European lamps, including a tall French tripodal gilt bronze base with a central shaft, “a new feature and is an improvement in piano lamps.”
Both the shade and the base are incredibly special, and together create an amazing visual statement. The use of relatively early Favrile glass infuses the shade with a luminescence and radiance that is anticipated, but not always achieved, in leaded glass shades. Without a doubt, this is one of the rarest and finest examples of a Clematis lamp to ever appear on the market.
– Paul Doros, former curator of glass at the Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA and author of The Art Glass of Louis Comfort Tiffany (New York, 2013)