Who Was Louis Tiffany And Why Is He Important?
Of all the artists that America has produced, Louis Comfort Tiffany was one of the most gifted. Tiffany, born in 1848 in New York City, was the son of Charles Lewis Tiffany, the owner and founder of Tiffany & Company. This company was well known for its jewelry and silver at the time. Although he had the opportunity, Louis Tiffany chose to follow his own artistic path rather than join his father in the family business.
Louis Tiffany's first endeavor in the art world was in the area of painting. He got his training in New York City as well as in Paris. His first exhibit was at the National Academy of Design, in 1867. When traveling in Europe in 1868, he met Leon-Adolphe-Auguste Belly, who helped expose him to the Oriental style of painting.
A few years later, he traveled to Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, where he learned even more skills which he could incorporate in his paintings. Up until the mid 1870's, Tiffany was primarily known as a painter. However it was around that time that he started to experiment with glass. When Louis Tiffany started working with glass, he joined with Candace Wheeler, Samuel Colman and Lockwood De Forest, and together they created the Louis Comfort Tiffany and Associated Artists.
In 1881, one of their creations was a glass screen, from floor to ceiling, for use in the White House by President Chester A. Arthur. At this point, Mr. Tiffany was deeply involved with his glass works, and the Tiffany Glass Company was created. In 1902, it was then known as the Tiffany Studios. It was from this time on that Louis Tiffany's creations became more daring and experimental.
He found that glass with impurities in it, such as jelly jars, helped to create more intense colors for use in stained glass windows. However, other artists of the time did not agree. They wanted to continue with the customary method of creating stained glass by painting glass with enamels. Therefore, Tiffany continued his work alone.
In the late 1870s, Tiffany followed the Aesthetic Movement. It focused on integrating the various arts in his decorative work. One of the greatest examples of this type of artwork was for his good friends Louisine and Henry Osborne Havemeyer. Tiffany used various elements he had created including mosaic walls, fireplace screens, lighting fixtures, and a suspended staircase to decorate their home.
Tiffany first started using mosaics in the late 1870s. At this time he used bright colorful tiles to surround fireplaces. It was also at this time that he came up with the idea to use shapes other than squares when designing a mosaic piece. This allowed his creations to look more natural.
In the early 1890s, Tiffany experimented with a new technique of blending different colors of glass while still molten. He first used this glass in stain glassed windows. At this time, art glass was becoming a collector's dream, especially that of glass vessels. The public was interested in new forms, colors, and decorations in these vessels.
Making note of this, Tiffany used these techniques in his new creations of bowls and vases. Tiffany called his items created in this way "favrile" which is taken from Old English, meaning hand wrought, each piece unique. These Tiffany Favriles became very popular at the time.
At the turn of the century, the Art Nouveau movement was taking place. Louis Tiffany's work with his glass creations embraced these ideas, which focused on incorporating art into everyday life. It made use of nature themes, such as floral designs, as well as flowing lines in the art work. All of this helped make Tiffany one of the most versatile artists of his time.
Ophir Gallery has presented the public with extraordinary objects of art for over 35 years. Our offerings include authentic Tiffany Favrile, Tiffany Studios, Art Nouveau and many works by masters from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
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