Lamp with “Hanging Head Dragonfly” Shade and “Mosaic and Turtleback” Base

Discussion

FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

In the 1890s Louis Comfort Tiffany began using his opalescent Favrile glass to produce lamps, the decorative form for which he would become most famous. As the artistic director of Tiffany Studios located in Corona, New York, he approved all patterns but created relatively few lamps himself. Clara Driscoll, head of the Women’s Glass Cutting Department, was likely responsible for this shade and base. Driscoll began working for Tiffany in 1888, and she designed the majority of the firm’s lamps before she left the company in 1908 or 1909. Driscoll created at least eight dragonfly shades. This example is distinguished by its large size, glass cabochons, and the placement of insects’ bodies along the lower edge. While Tiffany Studios mass-produced these shades and bases, the firm varied the color scheme of each object to heighten the sense of handcraftsmanship. This daring design became one of Tiffany’s most popular and was made through 1924.

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