Looking Glass

Discussion

FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

By the late 1600s technical improvements in French glassmaking allowed artisans to cast and polish exceptionally large plates of glass. Monumental mirrors like this one reflected light and lent interiors a sense of theatrical splendor. This mirror’s frame is also made of glass, with each panel painted and gilded on the reverse side. The delicate, highly ornamental design recalls the work of René and Thomas Pelletier, French Protestants (known as Huguenots) who fled religious persecution and settled in England, bringing with them a distinctly French design sensibility.

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