Louis Comfort Tiffany : an American artist

Louis C. Tiffany was born in New York City on Feb. 18, 1848. He studied art in Paris and became an excellent painter, but after 1880 he devoted himself primarily to decorative work and to the design and production of glass. He became expert in glasstechnology; an inventor of new techniques. His trademark “favrile” glassware was created by combining different colors of molten glass, resulting in unique shapes and iridescence. Tiffany was inspired by the natural world around him; his glass works often include forms such as trees, flowers, dragonflies, etc.

Louis Comfort Tiffany’s father was a very successful jeweler (founder of New York jewelry firm Tiffany & Co.). Instead of taking a role in his father’s business, Louis Comfort Tiffany created his own “new” business venture. He decided to bring elegance to Americans by offering glassware products such as lamps, vases, etc. Tiffany products soon became very popular. His successful company branched into many artistic ventures, including blown glass, jewelry, enamels, pottery, lamps, decorative metal, mosaics, and huge stained-glass windows. Louis Comfort Tiffany employed many artistic craftsmen, whom he personally supervised. He was a great artist, and one of few Americans who pioneered the Art Nouveau movement.

Vase

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Dragonfly Lamp

Part of “Education” mural at Yale University.

“The Tree of Life”; stained glass panel; Tiffany

Dogwood stained-glass window; Tiffany

Chicago Cultural Center (largest Tiffany dome in the world).