Tiffany

If you have been reading my past few blogs, you’ll know that I recently had the great pleasure of viewing the Artistic Luxury Exhibition at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Featuring Faberge, Lalique and Tiffany, it was a rare opportunity for anyone into antiques, glassware or artistic finery. I covered Faberge and Lalique and now turn to other masterpieces, those of the “two Tiffanys.”

Stained glass lamps and windows have been associated with the artisans of Tiffany for as long as we can remember. Pieces such as this absolutely fantastic Autumn Leaf Globe Lamp is just one example! I am sure many people think of Tiffany & Co. as a ‘solitary’ company. Not so. Tiffany & Co. was actually the creation of Charles Lewis Tiffany, while his son, Louis Comfort Tiffany, owned Tiffany Glass & Decorating Co. Although they were run separately, Louis Comfort often did design work for Tiffany & Co. Both companies displayed their wares at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris to rave reviews. The Shah of Persia appointed Tiffany & Co. to be “Gold and Silversmiths to His Imperial Majesty.” There were, however, critics of their “showy displays”, one reviewer saying “every piece has only one meaning: to appear as concentrated money.” Well, duh! These were incredible works of art, appealing to many; afforded by only a few.

Tiffany & Co. employed craftsmen skilled in metalsmithing and the lapidary arts. Necklaces, tiaras, brooches, corsage ornaments, just about anything that could be adorned with precious jewels, was produced. The firm was known for its stock of rare yellow diamonds, often procured by their gemologist, George Frederick Kunz. He became a celebrity explorer of his day, procuring rare mineral specimens and gemstones for Tiffany & Co. and private and institutional collectors. He actually has a mineral named after him, kunzite, which was used in some of his pieces of jewelry. This ring is in a gold filigree setting, paired with emeralds and designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany.

One of the most audacious examples of Tiffany & Co.’s jewelry is this fabulous diamond necklace made for Ellen Garretson Wade. Not being familiar with the name “Wade” is only because I am not a history buff, nor from Cleveland, Ohio. Mrs. Wade’s husband was Jeptha Homer Wade II, named for a grandfather who had founded the Western Union Telegraph Co. in 1856. They were knowledgeable and sophisticated collectors who traveled extensively, often engaging Tiffany to mount the gems they purchased along the way. They were also clients of Louis Tiffany’s firm, Tiffany Studios, and commissioned two mosaic walls and an important stained glass window for the burial vault of Mr. Wade’s grandfather. The Wade family history is a fascinating story in itself, one you might want to check out.

This coffee set was made by Paulding Farnham, who collaborated with Louis Comfort Tiffany in presenting a series of scent bottles at the 1900 Paris Exposition. Farnham was well known for his designs in exotic motifs. This set, was in the Moorish taste of silver gilt, enhanced with elaborate enameling and cabochon amethysts. Amazingly enough, the set survived in its original case with a calling card, revealing it was sold from the Paris Showroom of Tiffany & Co. to a client in Monte Carlo! How would you like to serve your best guests with this set?

Anyone who watched the Oscars this year can tell that we are in a time of ‘understated elegance.’ The ladies wore long, classic gowns and often little, or at least not noteworthy, jewelry. It is understandable in these times of economic strife, but I am sure if I had a piece of jewelry by Tiffany, I’d have a difficult time keeping it in a box or bank vault. Their pieces were meant to sparkle and shine!

Thank you once again to the staff of the Cleveland Museum of Art! They made our visit very pleasurable and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. (The Artistic Luxury Exhibition is currently at the San Francisco Fine Arts Museum Legion of Honor, until May 31^st. If you get the chance, be sure to visit!)

For those of you who follow our Collectors’ Quest blogs (and we thank you for it), you might recall one of mine in August of 2008. It was about my personal ‘wish list’ of items, one at the tip-top being a piece by Rene Lalique (French glassmaker, 1860-1945.). I’ve always loved Lalique’s incredible style and marvelous glassware and jewelry. After the blog was published, I received a friendly email from Laura Andrews, Communications Associate at the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA.)  She informed me of a fantastic exhibition that was at the museum, featuring not only Lalique, but Faberge and Tiffany as well. Both hubby and I became very excited about it and planned a trip in fall. Unfortunately, life and then the holidays, got in the way and before we knew it, we were down to the wire; the exhibition was ending in January, 2009. We rearranged our work schedules and made it our priority to get there before it closed. And we did, and boy, were we glad!

The CMA was easy to find and the staff was helpful and courteous. (The ladies at the Information Booth even pointed us in the direction of an antique store nearby.) Although it was very cold outside that day, the feeling inside was ‘warm and fuzzy.’ We were glad to see that it was not overly crowded and we were able to view the many treasures without waiting in line, or being rushed. There was plenty of time to enjoy it all.

Because my original focus was on Lalique, I’ll cover it in this article. My next two will be on Tiffany and Faberge.

Many of the pieces found in this exhibit called “Artistic Luxury – Faberge, Tiffany, Lalique” had been in private collections and had never been seen before by the adoring public. In addition to the elegant Lalique glassware, vases and such, we were privileged to view so many beautiful pieces of jewelry (another addiction I freely admit to.) For example this poppy necklace. Made of glass, enameled and inset with diamonds, it is ‘to die for.’

A contemporary of Lalique, “Vever” made this flower pin. It is made of Mississippi River Pearls and plique-a-jour leaves. Called a ‘bodice ornament’, it was shown at the 1900 Exposition Universelles in Paris. They truly loved items from nature in those days.

Lalique’s choice of ivory and diamonds on this fabulous hair ornament showed he could mix and match a variety of materials to perfection. It almost looks real.

My hubby was dazzled by this fantastic diamond butterfly brooch. The man next to him exclaimed “it’s like sitting at the Super Bowl and seeing all the camera flashes.” While it is lovely in our photo, it is nothing in comparison to seeing it in person! It was made at the turn of the century (the last one) by an unknown French maker and was composed of pairs of matchings stones.

Lalique’s fascination with ‘all things live’, is highlighted in this awesome pendant. This was one of several items purchased from Rene’ Lalique’s studio in 1902 for the museum of the Stieglitz School of Applied Arts in St. Petersburg. The pendant was based on the artist’s recurring theme of intertwined serpents clasping pearls with their fangs.

As far as glassware goes, Lalique was top of the line. This incredible creation is called “Frogs and Lilypads Vase” and combines applied, cast and molded techniques. It is circa 1909-12.

While I strongly hinted to dear hubby that my birthday is ‘right around the corner’, he did not even try to haggle about buying any Lalique for me, but kindly purchased the marvelous book which covered the exhibition so my drooling can continue.

In a bit of an irony, one of the pictures shows Sarah Bernhardt, the stage actress from the late 1800s. She is featured in a play called “Izeyl” and she is wearing a lily diadem made for her by Lalique. It was taken in Cleveland, Ohio, the very city that this fabulous exhibition would take place, many, many years later. (For those not in-the-know, a diadem is an ornamental jeweled headdress.)

Stay tuned for more on Tiffany and Faberge.

Because photography was not allowed in the exhibit, I want to thank CMA for the press kit with these fabulous photos of Lalique items in their show.